Old and New Demons
by darkgazer622
Summary: Non-massacre. Sakura is left to her own means and faces a dilemma; resign from her Ninja duties forever or go on without her boys. When all hope seems lost the most unlikely person puts his faith in her. When Naruto and Sasuke finally come home, what will they find? The story of how a young girl takes it upon herself to become stronger, with a little help along the way of course.
1. Chapter 1: Hypocrite

**Author's note: Hey guys! This is my first story so thank you in advance for reading! Any suggestions are gladly welcome!** :D

(Sakura's POV)

_Concentrate. It's Easy, if they can do it, I can too._ I thought to myself. _You can do this; all you have to do is focus... _I took a deep breath.

"Okay Sakura, Lets try it again. Go ahead when you're ready." His deep voice rang clear in my head and calmed some of my nerves. I crouched, ready to spring, kunai at my fingertips. I flew into the air and twisted my body, throwing the kunai at the strategically place targets. One of the targets was hidden out of range, needing to collide with another kunai to hit it. I could hear the sound of metal hitting wood as I continue to flip in the air. Three of the six targets were hit. Thwack! Four down. Thwack! Five down. I found myself grinning. _One more…_

"SAKURA-CHAN!" My eyes flickered towards the annoying voice that had called my name. _Dammit! _I slipped up, the last kunai missed its mark due to my momentary distraction. The entire process had barely taken a few seconds but had felt as if it had gone in slow motion. _I'm going to kill that Dobe! _

I landed on my feet and groaned. "You've _got_ to be kidding me!" I yelled.

"You lost focus again." Itachi said in a slightly teasing voice. I glared at him. _Well, we can't all be child geniuses. _I then turned to my idiot team mate. Although he had matured a little since the academy days, the 14 year old ninja was still as load and obnoxious as ever.

"What is it Naruto?" I snapped. He probably didn't deserve it (It had been my fault after all) but I was still a little angry. However he didn't hesitate in the slightest.

"Sakura-chan! Teme and I are going to Ichiraku! You wanna come?" I gave a wiry sigh.

"I'm kind of busy." I muttered as I walked over to the various targets to retrieve my kunai.

"Oh come on! Pleeeeeeeaaaaassseee!" He drug out the word in that wining tone of his. "You can come too, Itachi!" The Uchiha heir sighed as well.

"No thank you, Naruto." Itachi was as polite as ever, but the blonde ninja refused to give up.

"Oh come on! You two are a couple of kill-joys! Tell 'em Teme!" Sasuke had a annoyed look on his face.

"You said we were going to train, not eat ramen. I'm leaving." The younger Uchiha turned and began to walk away and I had to suppress my laughter. "See you Itachi, Sakura." He said quietly. I waved with minimal effort. Sasuke usually paid little attention to me. We had become more friendly over the time we spent to each other but there was still the tension of our academy days hanging in between us, like a wall that refused to break down.

"All right, see you at home." Itachi said to Sasuke as he left the training grounds "You ready to try again, Sakura?" Itachi reverted my attention to the training session and I was about to say "yes" until Naruto interrupted again.

"So no one's coming?! You guys suck!" He huffed, a pout forming on his lips. I gave another sigh. _That pout, he knows I can't refuse that pout_.

"Once more Naruto, and I will come with you." Naruto's blue eyes immediately lit up with joy, any past disappointment wiped from his face.

"YES!" The single word rang through the grounds loudly.

"Naruto! You have to be quiet, I'm trying to concentrate!" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"Sorry Sakura-chan! I'll be quiet!" I rolled my eyes at his too-loud answer, but turned back to the targets nonetheless. Itachi gave me a nod to continue as a took another deep breath. _Here we go again...__**Come on! Do it already! **_My inner snapped quiet harshly. _Go away, you're a distraction._ Snorting, she faded into the back of my mind finally giving me some peace, I took this moment to jump back in the air once more. However, the results were the same as the last aggravating attempts. All the weapons hit the mart, except for the last flipping kunai.

"Why can't I hit that last one?!" I glared angrily at unmarred target like it was somehow it's fault I had missed.

"Don't get upset, Sakura." Itachi said as he put a hand on my shoulder comfortingly. "You'll get it." His words were encouraging, but they didn't make me feel any better as they usually did.

"Yeah, I guess. Thanks for your time Itachi, sorry I wasted it." I began to walk away "Come on, Naruto. I think I could use that ramen now." Both boys had a slight frown on their face, but I pretended not to notice. Naruto hurried after me, but not before giving Itachi a worried look. "You coming?" I asked over my shoulder.

"Yeah!" The blonde ninja's usual happy face returned and fell into step beside me. "See ya, Itachi!"

"Goodbye, you two." Itachi's stoic features returned, but their was still slight worry in his eyes. I gave him a small smile to let him know I was okay. Itachi seemed to buy it and his eyes softened with a rare smile of his own. My fake smiles seemed to be getting better. I turned away as Naruto put an arm around my shoulders.

"Don't worry, I know you'll get it!" He said with a stupid grin, I couldn't help but feel slightly encouraged by his words. Then again Naruto just seemed have that effect on everyone.

"Yeah...ready to go get something to eat?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"Of course!" I had to chuckle at the knuckle headed ninja, if he was good at one thing, it was cheering you up for sure.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXX

It was dark by the time Naurto and I parted ways outside the ramen stand. We had said goodbye and then began to walk in opposite directions. Me going towards the civilian side of Kohona, and Naruto to his one bedroom apartment where a lot of shinobi lived. I let my mind wander as I walked down the deserted streets of Kohona's market district, the usual bustling pathways were now eerily silent as all the vendors had packed up for the night in wait for another beautiful summer day to set up shop.

Simple yet pretty homes lined the streets. Lights from inside the houses glowed giving me plenty of light to see, and even so...they gave me an uneasy feeling. I walked down the same path everyday, and it was getting flat out tiring. _Or maybe I'm still upset about today's training session_. It was no secret I'm the weakest link of Team 7. The boys always try to help me and protect me, and for a long time I was perfectly okay with that. But lately...it seems on every mission I hold the team back. Earlier today. I had run into Itachi at the training grounds. I was surprised to see him there, since the Uchiha's had their own personal training grounds but knowing how stressed Sasuke usually was from _his _clan oblations I could only imagine the need for Itachi to get away from his family. I floored when he offered to help me with target practice as I could imagine he had much better things to do but I was ecstatic no less. Despite Itachi's cold reputation, he was actually quite kind when he wanted to be.

_And now I've embarrassed myself in front of Itachi as well. I don't even know why he bothered, I'm sure he knew I was just going to fail. _A noise down a nearby alley snapped me out of my self pity. I quickly grabbed a kunai from my weapons pouch and took a fighting stance. I couldn't tell who it was since they hid their chakra, but I could just make out a man's figure in the darkness. He disappeared before my eyes and everything was still for a few moments. I didn't notice him behind me until it was too late and he had grabbed me. His hand gripped my wrist painfully causing me to drop my weapon, while his other hand closed around my throat. "I'm disappointed, Sakura. I've been tailing you for ten minutes now and you weren't aware of my presence until I decided to make a noise. If I was a real enemy you would have been dead." _Dammit. _

Kakashi-sensei quickly released me and I fell to the ground with a load thump. The copy ninja stared down at me, his expression unreadable."Kakashi-sensei..." I didn't know what I could say. I knew I was a disappointment to him, after all even the airhead Naruto was a much stronger ninja than me. He looked at me for a few more seconds before he turned to walk away. "Come with me." I didn't like the way he said this, in fact his words scared me a little. But I knew I couldn't ignore him, so I got up from the ground shakily and followed Kakashi. He began running in the opposite direction of my house and towards the closest training grounds. _Training grounds? It's late at night, why would he want to go there? _I could tell Kakashi was slowing down considerably so I could keep up, and from the expression on his half hidden face he wasn't pleased about it.

When we had reached the training grounds my curiosity had gotten the best of me. "What are we doing here?" The older ninja didn't answer, instead he walked to one end of the field and bent his knees into a battle stance. My eyes went slightly wide as Kakashi lunged towards me at a blinding speed. I only just managed to dodge his punch aimed for my stomach, but I failed to get out of the way in time to miss his leg that swiped under me and tumbled to the ground. Before I had a chance to register what had happened, he fist came down and hit me in the gut. It wasn't a hard punch by his standards, but it still knocked the wind out of me.

I rolled out of the way of another kick and jumped to my feet. Kakashi didn't give me any chance to get on the offensive as he quickly threw a string of combos my way. I could only dodge a few of them while the rest hit my body painfully. _Those are going to bruise. _Even though I was in pain, I threw my own set of punches, and not surprising he blocked and dodged each perfectly. When I threw a kick aimed at his head, he grabbed my ankle and threw me into a nearby tree. My head slammed into bark and exposed skin bled from where it had scraped against the wood. Kakashi had never been this rough, he had always made sure we weren't hurt during training and never intentionally put us in harms way. _Why is he doing this?_

Kakashi sighed tiredly as he walked over to the tree. I expected his expression to be angry or disappointed, but instead it was sad. "I'm sorry, Sakura, but I had to do that."

"You had to?!" I yelled now angry at him. I tried to stand but my head hurt too much and I fell back down against the tree. Kakashi knelt down and put his hand to my face and examined my head.

"You're fine, its just a superficial wound." I continued to glare at him harshly. "Don't give me that look, Sakura, I had to test you."

"Test me?" My glare dropped, replaced by a look of confusion. "Why would you have to test me like that?" He sighed again, his head drooping.

"As you probably know, Jiraiya is going to take Naruto so he can train away from the eyes of enemies." I nodded, this I did know, I was sad about it but I knew it's safest for Naruto as well as Kohona. "Well..." he trail off as if he couldn't find the words to tell me.

"Just spit it out." I snapped, I was getting pissed off. _What hell could he being telling me after all this? _

"Sakura...I have decided to take Sasuke away from Kohona to train as well." There was a brief moment of excitement before it dawned on me he had said "Sasuke" and not "you _and_ Sasuke". "My mouth fell open but he continued. "Sasuke already knows, and his parents have agreed. It would be best for him, without Naruto here he doesn't really have anyone..._productive_ to train with." I knew when he said "productive" he meant strong. "And it will do him good to get away from his clan's obligations."

After he had finished, the training grounds became dead silent, even the surrounding birds and crickets seemed still. My brain couldn't register what Kakashi had just said and I closed my eyes in disbelief. _He is joking! Yes! This is all a joke and in a few seconds Naruto and Sasuke are going to jump out and laugh and say "Gotcha!" _But nothing of the sort happened. The air stayed thick with tension and Kakashi's face showed no sign of joking. My eyes started to tear up.

"B-but-"

"Sakura." Kakashi cut me off. "I'm sorry, but it's for the best if you just resign after we leave." With that he stood with hands in his pockets and began to walk away. He was half way across the field before I found my voice again.

"For the best?! What the hell is that?! What happened to never leaving your team mates behind, huh? You said people who leave their-" Kakashi was in front of me in a flash.

"It's best for all of us, Sakura!" He yelled. I filched against the tree, not expecting him to get angry, after all wasn't it me who is supposed to be angry about this?

"No, it's best for you and-"

"I'm trying to protect you!" That shut me up. I just stared at him, there was anger in his expression, but there was also a deep, underlying sadness. "I don't want to see you get hurt, Sakura." He said much quieter. "You're not cut out for this life, and if you where to continue... you will get yourself killed. You don't have the emotional or physical capability to be a ninja. You may have great chakra control...but that isn't enough. You are way behind your team mates, your much too slow, and you're just...weak. I'm sorry, but you're not coming with us and that's final."

Something inside my mind broke at that point. Like my world was shattering into a thousand pieces and the cruel reality could finally be seen underneath. I couldn't argue with him, because I knew every word was the harsh truth. _I am weak. _Sasuke had said it to me many times, but I had just smiled and shrugged it off. But now...as Kakashi stood before me with that pitying look, I took it to heart.

"I see..." I couldn't find anything else to say to him. What really could I say? "_Okay! You guys go have fun, bring me back a souvenir from the places you visit!" _With that, I stood shakily and stumbled in the direction of my house.

"Sakura, wait-" Kakashi grabbed my wrist to keep me from leaving. "I really am sorry, I just don't want you to get hurt. Look at it this way, you can just be a normal person. Go out, have fun with friends, settle down when you're older. Ninjas don't always get a chance to do that...now you can." It was a bullshit excuse to make him self feel better...but I didn't care.

"Yeah, I guess you're right...Good night, Kakashi." My wrist slipped from his hand, and this time...he didn't stop me.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXX

I didn't get up the next day until my mothers excessive banging on my door finally drove me to leave the house by jumping from my roof to the next and down to the streets below. I knew I'd be in for it once I returned, but I didn't really care at the moment. I avoided the large, busy streets and opted for side streets and alley ways for fear I would run into someone like Ino or Sasuke...or Kami forbid Kakashi.

On a Saturday, I would usually go out with Ino or Naruto, but today was not a day I would like to spend listening to this week's gossip or eating ramen...again. Luckily, I didn't see anyone I knew except for a few merchants I regularly bought from or a neighbor. An hour of walking about Kohona and I found myself at the trainings grounds, the same grounds I tried -and failed- to hit all six stupid targets. I had brought my weapons pouch with me (it had become a habit) and I twirled a kunai in my hands over and over. I thought about trying again to hit the targets myself, but quickly became discouraged. _If I couldn't do it WITH Itachi's help, there's no way in hell I can do it alone-_

"You just going to stand there?" I whipped around to come face to face with Sasuke. His obsidian eyes looked me over with a bored and scrutinizing glance.

"What are you doing here, Sasuke?" said boy merely shrugged and leaned against one of the tall surrounding trees with that 'cool' attitude of his and continued to look me over. "Take a picture- it'll last longer." I spat angrily. His eyebrows raised at my outburst as I had never really talked to with such hostility, but I ignored him and turned back around.

"I'm guessing Kakashi spoke with you then?" I didn't need to answer him, I knew my glowering silence was enough.

"What do you want?" I finally said after a few more moments of silence. "Because if you want to rub it in my face or insult me you can leave."

"I don't want to do either." He came to stand next to me, but avoided looking at me. He opened his mouth to say something, but there was difficulty in finding the words. And his eyes. Pity. That's the look in his eyes. He _pitied _me. "I wanted to say I'm sorry," he paused, looking into the trees, down at his feet, anywhere but in my direction. "When Kakashi told me he wanted to leave Kohona to train, I didn't realize he meant with out you when I agreed."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better or something?" I snorted.

"Yes. No...I don't know, Sakura. We may not get along all the time...but I still find it..._strange _and unappealing Kakashi would leave you behind. You know with all that spat he gave us about teamwork and and never leaving people behind." Finally, he looked me in the eyes, "I suppose I'm here more for me than you...I...didn't want to leave on bad terms...especially since who knows when we'd ever meet again." I couldn't help but laugh a little at this, _After all this time... _"What's so funny?" he snapped with his usual attitude.

"Nothing...it's just...it took splitting the team up for us to actually be on good terms." A guilt stricken look crossed his face and he sighed loudly while rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah well..."

I laughed again. "It's okay Sasuke...I'm not mad at you for how things worked out...it just did. Besides, I know it's my fault as well, for the way I acted I mean. Yeah I'm mad at Kakashi for being a perverted hypocrite but other than that...it's okay." Disbelief crossed his face at he looked down to me.

"You're okay with being alone here?" _Alone_. Without my team, my so called best friends, or my teacher. _Pfft. Yeah right, teacher._

"...I'll be fine." it sounded like I saw trying to convince myself more than him.

"That wasn't my question." He glared at me in an attempt to intimidate me into saying what he wanted, but I had become immune to his glares a long time ago.

"Does it matter?" I glared right back.

"...No. I suppose it doesn't." he admitted. "But..what are you going to do when we are gone? It's going to be hard to train just by yourself." _So Kakashi didn't tell him everything..._

"I'll still have rookie 9 here you know, maybe I'll see if I can train with Hinata's team or something." It was easier to lie to him than to admit the complete embarrassment of Kakashi telling me to quit. "I'll be just fine."

He didn't looked completely convinced, but I didn't give him any room to argue. So he nodded and said goodbye after a stern look of disapproval, and I pretended not to notice as I began twirling the kunai once more. Sasuke's concern had caught me off guard but made me happy none the less. _Well at least one god thing had come out of this mess..._

After Sasuke had left. I debated the thought of trying to hit the targets in my head for quite sometime. Sasuke's little "confession" had depressed me somewhat as well. He was right in one way- it would be hard to train alone. The other teams would be busy with their own training and I could not bother them with my own problems, it wouldn't be fair. So I gave up on the idea altogether at went home, my confidence even lower than it had been when before.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXX

The boys left on the same day, something I found cynically hilarious. _Kami must really hate me. _It wasn't much of a goodbye as there had been a going away party the night before and had really said my good byes then. "Don't worry, Sakura. We'll be back before you know it!" Naruto was smiling brightly while Sasuke wore his usual haughty smirk.

"Of course," I said with a small smile of my own "it's you two I'm worried about." I turned to Kakashi and Jiraiya who were speaking enthusiastically about the newest _Icha Icha_ _Jiraiya_ was writing. "Hey, you two!" They stopped talking for a moment a glanced at me curiously. "You two better watch out for them got me? Because if anything happens to _either _of them, I will burn every copy of _Icha Icha i_n Kohona-and you _know _I will!" Both men blanched and stuttered at my threat but I ignored their cries of torture and turned back to the boys. "Stay safe you hear me?"

Naruto laughed at the two 'grownups,' "Don't worry, we will."

"It's Naruto you have to worry about considering I won't be there to save his ass anymore." Sasuke chimed in.

"Hey! Take that back Teme!" I could only sigh as my two idiots began to argue...again. _Well at least somethings don't change. _I smacked both of them on the back of their heads and I spoke before they could complain.

"Come on you two, this is the last time we will see each other for a long time! Could you just suck it up for five more minutes?" they droned a 'yes, Sakura.' "Thank you. Now remember what I said. I know you two will do great and come home even stronger but, STAY OUT OF TROUBLE! I swear you two are _magnets _for trouble!"

"Yes, yes. We will be careful. Calm down, Mother Hen." I smacked Sasuke again and then hugged him, surprisingly he hugged me back with a small smile.

"Okay Naruto, time to head out!" Jiraiya waved at me, "we will back before you know it!" He said sounding very similar his younger counterpart.

"It's about time we head out to." Kakashi drawled. "Good bye, Sakura, take care of yourself." He hugged me, and then murmured in my ear low enough so only I could hear, "Remember what I told you, take it to heart." His arms dropped back to his sides and he stepped back.

"Of course I will." I said answering both of his statements. Sasuke nodded to me and waved good-bye.

"See you." He murmured.

To which I could only reply a quiet "Bye" After our little talk a few days earlier there wasn't much more to say. Naruto gave me one more goodbye hug then walked out the village gates with his new sensei and the last members of Team 7 "Bye, Sakura-chan!" He waved until his form was small in the distance. I stayed at the gate long after they left...some part of me praying for even just one of them to come back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A week later I had still been putting off going to the Hokage tower to resign, and instead- albeit stupidly- tried desperately to complete the target exercise. I had gotten extremely close a few times, even hitting a mark just barley a few inches away from the last target, but other than that success escaped me. Training for hours, I quit only when it had begun to get dark but I still didn't go home. I had rarely been at home since Kakashi told me they were leaving. If I wasn't training, I was killing time any way I could in order to avoid seeing my mother and her scrutinizing glaces. A lot of my time was spent at the library studying jutsus, and even attempting a few.

Most of them were either to advanced or I just couldn't figure out how to go about actually doing them. One type of jutsu did catch my eye though. I had been in the library for what seemed like hours before I found a volume marked _The Foundations of Medical Ninjutsu. _I had heard once ninjas only become medical ninjas if they aren't exceptional in anything else. But by reading only a few chapters I couldn't believe that statement. Medical Ninjutsu need absolute _precise _chakra control and tons of concentration.

Maybe it was desperation, but I spent the next few hours learning as much as I could about medical techniques. It was hard to figure out how to actually heal but I began practicing regulating my chakra and pooling it into my hands. It had already been established that I have better chakra control then both of the boys and could walk up a tree stories high before they could run up more then a few feet. Without this, my attempts would have failed right from the start, but soon after hours of work I was able to pool small amounts of chakra in my hand to heal a tiny cut made with a kunai.

"What are you up too?" I jumped at least three feet in the air out my chair I was sitting in. "Sorry, Sakura. I didn't mean to scare you." Itachi apologized.

"What the hell is it with you Uchihas and creeping up on people?!" The eldest Uchiha brother merely smirked, his smile eerily close to Sasuke's.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I don't believe it's any of your business." I didn't want to admit what had really happened and why I was desperately trying to learn better jutsus. What was the point? Itachi was already bound to know what Kakashi had told me-or could easily figure it out- he had a knack for knowing everything that went on in Kohona. Itachi didn't seem mad at my response as he merely shrugged. _Crap. He is too polite for his own good. _"Sorry." I muttered. _**There you go taking your anger out on other people again, **_inner scolded. _Like you are miss 'anger management!'_

"It's fine." Itachi took a seat across from me at the table I was sitting at. At the back of the large building out of view from any staff, I didn't expect to run into anyone...especially someone like Itachi

"So...what are _you _doing here then?" I said turning the question back on him.

He smirked again "None of your business."

"Original, Itachi." I scoffed.

"I'll tell you why I'm here, if you tell me why you're here, does that seem fair enough?"

After mulling it over for it few moments i caved, "...Fine. If you must know...I was researching a few jutsus."

He rested his chin on laced hands. "Hmm, really? Any type in particular?"

"Some medical Ninjutsu."

"Any luck?" I held up my hand which now only held a faint pink line smeared with blood. Itachi looked genuinely impressed at my attempt. "You just learned how to do that? From a book_?_"

"Um yeah...I mean it took a good hour or so to understand the technique and I really didn't even heal it all the way..."

"Don't sell yourself short, Sakura. That isn't easy, it takes a lot of chakra control. Then again I've heard you were always good at that." His words stunned me. Even though Itachi had always been polite to me and never belittled my abilities, I always felt he was just being nice.

"You think?" I asked quietly, not meeting his eyes.

"Of course, they teach us the bare basics in ANBU for emergencies and it is no easy task for most. Why do you think there aren't many medical ninjas around?" I shrugged and continued to stare at my slightly 'injured' hand. Itachi took a long breath, "This isn't just a sudden interest in the medical field is it? This is about Naruto and Sasuke." I groaned and laid my head down on the table.

"Why do you have to be so smart all the time, huh?" my voice was muffled by the tabletop but he seemed to understand my complaint.

"It's not my fault I was born a child genius. Now back to the subject, why are you stressing your self out about this, Sakura?"

"I'm not stressed out, I was merely reading up on some new techniques." From his expression I could tell he didn't believe me. "What's the big deal?"

"The deal is your _are _stressing yourself out." he held a hand up to stop me from interrupting, "Yes you are. From the dark circles under your eyes I can tell you haven't been sleeping. Why is that?"

I couldn't help the reflex of touching the bangs under my eyes, wishing they would just go away.

In an attempt to change the subject, I said "You still haven't told me what you're doing here you know. That was the deal."

He sighed irritably but complied. "I like it here. It's quiet and I'm a bit of reader-when i have the time that is. My family is a bit ah...stressful to be around them all the time."

I couldn't help but laugh, "You're hiding from your family too?" It slipped out before I had managed to register what I had said.

"Why are you hiding from your family, Sakura?" _Dammit. What is playing at?_

"Did I say that? I just meant-" his glare shut me up.

"Just tell me, Sakura. Maybe I can help." _Not unless you can somehow magically make me a better ninja._

"It doesn't matter. There's nothing you or I can do. Don't waste any more of your time on me." I began to pack away the books on the table and into my bag to read later, ignoring Itachi with his stunned expression.

"You said the same thing the other day. Is that how you really feel? That I'm wasting my time talking with you?" He pitiful look reminded me of Sasuke's.

"It's just the truth...I was worthless to my team and now they're gone. My mother never wanted me to be a ninja anyways, I just don't want to listen to her "I told you so" speech. They only reason I'm here any haven't resigned yet is because I'm too-"

"You're resigning?"

"Yeah...It's...for the best." I repeated Kakashi's words, and they didn't seem any less bitter coming from my mouth.

"'For the best'? Best for who?" The irony of his words had not escaped me.

"Everyone I guess."

"No it isn't." My head snapped up at his disagreement. "Those aren't your words, Sakura, and I know it. So who told you to resign?" I didn't answer him, there was no way to handle the embarrassment of my own sensei giving up on me. "Sakura? Who said-" _My god just leave me alone. _

"It was Kakashi, okay?!" My voice was much to loud for a library and any minute someone would come around to see what was going on. Shoving the rest of my books into my bag, I got up from the table and hurried out of the building, stupidly forgetting who it was I was running from and had only gotten a few yards from the library before Itachi appeared in front of me. "God Dammit, Itachi! Don't you have anything better to?"

"No actually. So will you just stop running away?"

"I'm tired. I want to go to bed." I tried to push past him but he held my arm.

"Sakura." I struggled against his grip to no avail. "Sakura stop!" I only stopped struggling when I tripped (over my own feet no less) and fell to my knees. _Don't cry. Don't cry. _As thefirst sob escaped my lips, Itachi pulled me to feet and walked me over to a nearby bench. Luckily, there was no one else around to witness my breakdown. Unfortunately; there was still Itachi.

"I-I'm Sorr-y." As the water damn finally broke, all hell came with it. I cried for what seemed like hours but in reality had only been about ten or so minutes. Itachi let me cry, he never scolded me or looked discussed but kept a hand on my back in an effort to comfort me. Eventually I was able to calm down until only a few quiet sobs were left.

"You obviously don't want to quit." He finally said. I could only manage a shake of my head. "Then don't"

"But how can't i? I d-ont have a teach-er or a team-"

"Then find one. If you want to get stronger don't think so low of yourself...especially from things other people say." I immediately thought of Sasuke and although we had left on good terms I couldn't help the slight sting that came from the memories of his words. _Weak, useless, stupid girl._

"You really think I could-get stronger I mean?"

"If you really try...then yes. Don't let a few targets discourage you." Despite everything I laughed at his ill attempt at a joke. "So will you continue? Please?" I looked into his dark eyes. For his scary reputation...I could only see kindness in his eyes. He really didn't want me to give up.

"But why? Why do you care so much?"

"Your distrust hurts, Sakura." He joked. "I don't want you to give up because I believe one day, you could be a great ninja...your just a late bloomer. I can see the determination you have, and if you put that determination with a teacher who actually does their job and _teaches...t_hen who knows." His jab at Kakashi made me smile. "And..I know my brother wasn't the nicest person he could have been to you." Again painful memories ensued "So? What do you say?" That was the most words I think I have ever heard an Uchiha say at one time.

In truth I didn't know what to say. He said he believed I could become a better ninja when I myself had lost all hope. And Kakashi...his warning still burned in the back of my brain. _**Screw him! He left us behind! We will show him! And the boys! Lets show them, everyone, what we can really do! **_Inner's speech sparked a fire in me that I hadn't felt in a long time.

"Okay, I'll do it." I smiled up at Itachi and he reciprocated with a smile of his own.

"Good."

* * *

The next day I found a suitable teacher, only I had begged and begged though. The Fifth Hokage was loud, rash, and very drunk a lot of the time, but she also took an interest in me I never saw with Kakashi. Even on the very first day of training I was completely and utterly exhausted, bruises covered my body and I knew then there was a long and hard road ahead of me- but I didn't care. I was going to prove Kakashi wrong, and Itachi right. _I can do this. I can become strong, strong enough to protect them for once. _


	2. Chapter 2: Replacements

**Author's note: Hey again all! I wanted to start by saying thank you so much to all the people who followed and read the story! You guys are so awesome and nothing makes me happier than seeing that people like reading my story, so thank you so much! I will try to update around every week or so but it really depends how hectic my classes are at the moment, so I hope to see you all again in about I week!**

**Reviews: I wanted to address a few reviews first so if you didn't review just go ahead and skip this! To all your kind words, thank you so much nothing feels more awesome than reading all the nice things you said! I hope you guys stay with the story! A few of you commented about the boys and their sexist behavior, I usually love these characters but lets all face it...they are a bunch of asshats at one time or another so I'm right with ya there but who knows whats in store or the future! To Jacqueline (you didn't sign in so I couldn't reply!): Originally I was going to do a time skip but then though there needed to be more emphasis on Itachi's and Sakura's relationship before the boys return. There is a slight time skip but only because this can't really be a day by day story or the boys would NEVER get back home! Again thank you all for reviewing! :D **

Chapter 2: Replacements

(Sakura's POV)

Another bolder flew over my head, missing me by just a few inches. _This woman is going to kill me. She is going to __**fricking **__kill me. _

"Come on, Sakura! I know you can do better than that!" Tsunade had been throwing anything and everything my way,literally, for the past hour and a half. She had quickly gotten tired of throwing little things like kunai and senbon and resorted to trying to take off my head with the surrounding wildlife.

She ripped another small tree out of the ground, roots and all, and turned to look at me. _Shit. _I jumped out of the way of the tree and landed halfway across the training grounds in an effort to get away from the mad woman. I had been told before that Tsunade was one tough lady and an even tougher teacher, but that didn't even _begin _to cover it. She was harsh, _exhausting_ to be around, and she didn't stand for one bit of whining, complaining, or slacking. If you fell down, she'd tell you get the hell back up and brush yourself off. If I was injured, she stop and let me heal myself if I could or if it was more serious she'd heal it and we'd continue back up for hours and hours.

"That's the ticket! Keep it up unless you want to be mince meat!" She came my way with a flurry of chakra enhanced punches, each one with the ability to shatter my bones. This part of my training was always the most terrifying. There was only one goal: dodge. The only rule? I wasn't allowed to hit back. All I could do was jump out of the way of the Slug-Princess and her fists of fury, and hope for the best.

The very first day of this training had gone disastrous; I had failed to dodge a single blow to my chest and ended up with two broken rips, 3 more cracked ones, a dislocated shoulder, (I had been thrown into a tree) all amongst dozens of cuts and busies all in about 5 minutes. Now six months later in my training I was much more careful, that didn't mean I came out scratch free every time though. More often than not, at the end of the day I looked like I had been put through a blender. While it was tough on most days, I really couldn't complain. I had learned more in six months with Tsunade than two years with Kakashi.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?!" I screamed at Tsunade. She gave me a wicked smile.

"What, and you aren't?" She laughed and punched the ground, the hard dirt shattered under her touch as if it were thin glass. The cracks came my way and I struggled to get away from the sinking earth, I flipped back once but landed wrong on my back foot, causing me to loose my balance. Tsunade saw the opportunity and raced over the cracked ground to kick me in the stomach sending me back a good twenty feet. This time I didn't get up.

"You okay, Sakura? Not dead?" She laughed at her own sick joke. I gave her a weak thumbs up from the ground where I still lay.

"No, you haven't succeeded in killing me...yet."

"Oh stop whining!" _Does it count as whining when you're actually hurt? __**To her apparently it does. **_Inner's strength was as drained as mine by this point, neither of us wanted to get up. I checked myself over, preforming a quick scan with my chakra. There was nothing too serious, some cracked rips and some bruised bones. They hurt like hell, but I knew I was going to get trouble from Tsunade if I openly showed the pain. I could just here her voice in my head, the very first lesson she'd given me, _"Medical ninja's don't show there pain." _She said. _"You grit your teeth, heal yourself, and move on. The team will depend on you to be able to heal them, you must put your own pain aside and focus on protecting the team. That's what being a medic means." _This had been one of the hardest lessons to put to practice. I was emotional by heart and I found it extremely difficult to push down those feelings and move on. But she was right after all, if there was an attack and I was too busy crying over my wounds, the team's safety would be put at stake.

"Alright, whats the damage?"

"Two cracked ribs. Fifth and...sixth, on the left side." She examined me with her own chakra to confirm.

"Forth and Fifth but very good. You're really improving." Tsunade was never one to coddle, but she praised when it was deserved. She would always make me diagnose my own injuries for practice, I was getting better at it but hours of exhausting training sometimes took it's toll. "I think that's enough for today." She healed my ribs with a speed I could only dream to achieve one day and helped me up off the ground. She pat me on the back-which hurt- and walked with me to the edge of the grounds.

"I'm free to go?" I asked. It seemed almost too early for us to quit and I couldn't help my suspicion. "It's only been like four hours." She grinned wickedly again. _Oh god I know that look._

"Yep, we are stopping early today, you will need your strength for tomorrow. I have a special training session in mind."

"Yay." I drawled. She gave me her _stop complaining and get over it_ glare. "I mean...yay!"

"Hilarious, Sakura. Now go on and get something to eat and some rest. You'll regret it later if you don't." She transported away in a puff of smoke and left me to take the long trek home. These training grounds had become our personal training grounds as no one else comes here anymore. They had been long abandoned and desolate, but with a little TLC they were perfect. The fields lay on the outskirts of Kohona close to the Hokage monument and away from any homes or businesses-perfect so that no one gets hurt from Tsunade and her freakish super human strength...well no one but me anyway.

I liked having my own space to practice when ever I needed to, but it was so far from my home I barely made it to my door without collapsing after a long day of training. _**Well here we go again. **_Inner seemed as enthusiastic about the idea of walking home as I did but I didn't have the strength or chakra to transport myself back, so I put aside my aches and pains for the moment and waked out of the gate and towards the inner city of Kohona.

I lived in a small civilian section of the village where the houses were identical, and absolutely nothing interesting happened.._ever_. Though I guess it doesn't really matter where I live anymore considering like 90% of my life revolves around training now. I work with Tsunade Monday through Saturday (if I was lucky she would give me the entire weekend off) and on Sunday's I would get as much sleep as I could, but even on my day off I practiced on my own. I rarely saw any of Rookie 9 or even my own mother, she resented me even more now than ever for it. I suppose she thought with my team gone I'd give up the ninja life and become the perfect little daughter I used to be before the academy. To her credit I was a step away from doing so, I have Itachi to thank for pulling me out of my self pity. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen him in a while either... I suppose this wasn't out if the ordinary though, he was a high ranking ninja after all, he had ANBU missions and clan duties to deal with.

I pushed Inner's complaints to the back of my mind and hurried home. Twenty minutes later I walked up the stairs of my small two story house. My house wasn't anything special, just a light blue wooden building with white trim and flower beds that hung on the window sill. The flowers were beginning to wilt from lack of water and I made a mental note to take care of them later.

I cautiously entered the hallway of my house, hoping that my mother wasn't home yet. Unfortunately for me, she sat drinking tea at the kitchen table. She glanced up at me as I entered the room, then avoided her eyes back to the tea cup in her hands. "You're home early." She murmured into the glass.

"So are you." I pour myself some tea and sat down across from her and silence ensued as per usual. I don't think we have even had a proper conversation that didn't end in an argument since I started my training with Tsunade months ago.

"So, how was your day?" She asked quietly.

"Fine, normal day of training." She looked disapprovingly at the table at the word training. "And yours?"

"Fine." she repeated my answer. "I'm still having those headaches though." I sighed, slightly aggravated.

"Mom, I told you to get that checked out. Or why don't you let me check-"

"No. I'm fine, they're just headaches. I'll take some aspirin." She immediately changed the subject at my proposal of checking out her headaches as always. "Suki invited us to breakfast tomorrow. I told her we would be there-"

"Mom, you know I have training on Saturday mornings."

"It's one day, Sakura. I'm sure the Hokage will let you take the day off for once." Her voice became much more strained as if she was holding words back.

"I can't. I have a schedule-"

"It's one little get together, Sakura." She said sternly "Do you know how long it's been since you have been anywhere besides with that damn woman-"

"Don't talk about her like that!" I stood up from my chair as I yelled. I put up with a lot of back hand comments from my mother, but I never allowed her to speak ill of Tsunade.

"I will talk about anyone how I please! It's time you stopped this-this nonsense!"

"Nonsense? It that what you call my life?!" I could feel my anger that was usually buried boil to the surface as it always did when speaking to her. I hated that I argued with her so much, but I also couldn't

let her just walk over me any longer. _I as so tried of have this argument. _"When are you going to get it? I'm not quitting no matter what you say!"

"Why, Sakura? So you can end up like your father?"

"Dad was a good man, he died for what he believed in-"

"He died for a pointless and stupid fight, he died because he didn't want to give up his glory days! He left us _behind! _And you know what? If you continue this...you will die the same pointless death!" That was a slap in the face and one that stung by far much worse than anything she had ever said to me. _How could she say that? How can she talk about Dad that way? _I chose not to respond to her insult and instead left the kitchen and ran up the stairs to my room and locked the door. _Every time...every fricking time I come home it's the same damn thing! I'm tired of it! _I punched my bedroom door witch only resulted in my hand hurting, a semi damaged door, and another rebuttal from my mother downstairs about ninjas and their "disrespect for personal property." I held in more punches and resorted to screaming into my pillow for a good few minutes.

In the end, I held the pillow over my ears to block out my mother's complaints, screamed some more, and eventually fell into a long but troubled sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

The next day I woke up after my mother had already left for the silly party, which meant I was late. The clock read 9:30, already half an hour late for Saturday training. _Crap crap crap crap crap! _I jumped out of bed to take the quickest shower of my life and along the way I banged many of my bruises on various walls and shelves in my hurry to get ready (which hurt worse than receiving them in the first place), but I continued in my rushing and flew out the door less than ten minutes later. _Yeah, I am so dead now. _Tsunade hated lateness more than anything and she made that perfectly clear the first day of training, I was much to scared of her to even challenge that idea and always made sure to show up early.

I burst through the training ground gates gasping for air about five minutes later. "I'm here, I'm here! I'm so sorry please don't kill me!" I began my pleading, but I couldn't even see Tsunade. _Oh my god, did she leave because I didn't show up? Did she-_

"You're late." I whipped around to begin my pleading again before I even realized it hadn't been Tsunade's voice, but Itachi's.

"What the hell are you doing here?! Where's Tsunade?" I said panicked.

"Calm down, she's in her office-"

"Okay, Okay- this is fine, I'll just go and explain to her what happened and-and-"

"Sakura." Itachi put his hands on my shoulders to get me to look at him. "You're not in trouble, and if you would just calm down, I will tell you what is going to happen." I was still breathing heavily and my heart hadn't stopped beating a mile a minute, but I nodded for him to continue hesitantly. "Tsunade is very busy with the upcoming Chunin exams as they are being held in Kohona again this year. She has asked me to help you continue with your training. " It took me a minute to process what he had said and relax enough to realize I wasn't going to be crushed by various large rocks thrown by a crazy woman for being late, I sank to the floor in my realization and let out a breath of relief still panting. Itachi bent down beside me with a smirk on his face. "You were really worried, weren't you?"

"It isn't funny! I though she was going to murder me, Itachi!" He laughed at my exaggeration. "Why are you filling in anyway?" I was still to panicked to realize how rude it actually sounded.

He didn't seem to acknowledge it though. "My team is out of commission for a while. We were on a mission a few days ago and most of the team was critically injured. I have some free time now and Tsunade asked me if I'd like to help."

"Oh, I see...are your teammates going to be okay?"

"They will be fine, but they won't be able to go on a missions for a good while. So, I'm your new temporary teacher." I was glad I wasn't going to be murdered, but I also didn't know how I felt about Itachi taking over. I usually enjoyed his calm attitude and was greatly thankful to him, but at the same time he was still the famous Itachi Uchiha known for his powerful and sometimes scary skills. He seemed to notice my discomfort and gave me an encouraging smile. "Come on, let's get started,shall we?" I got up from the ground warily and followed him. It was strange that Tsunade would ask Itachi to fill in for her, but I suppose it was my doing considering I had told her of what Itachi had done for me long ago.

"Tsunade said you were working on Taijutsu on Saturdays?" Itachi called over his shoulder.

"Y-yeah, we were practicing fighting techniques with out using chakra." Chakra enhanced fighting was one of the first things I learned considering I had near perfect chakra control before I began by apprenticeship, but she didn't want me always to rely on it.

He stopped near the center of the field and told me to wait,then continued further up. "I want you to first block my attacks so I can see where you stand, alright?" I nodded and took me fighting stance, as did he, and came at me from the side. I had heard of his speed...but this was just ridiculous. By the time I could realize he was moving, I was on the floor and in pain. I suppose he didn't take into account how much he would need to slow down for me, I wasn't in ANBU like most of the people he trained with nor was I an Uchiha.

"I'm very sorry, are you okay?" He held out a hand to help me up, but I pretended I didn't notice and got up on my own in an effort to keep any dignity I had left.

"Yeah, I'm fine, really!" _Oh,that hurt. _I pushed the littlest amount of chakra into my injured areas to subside the pain a bit.

"You're sure? We can try something else-"

"No! I mean...no, really, I'm fine. Can...can I try again?"

He smiled. "Of course."

In the next hour we were able to find a pace that I could keep up with and still be challenged, but I was knocked down a few times. Unlike Tsunade though, he didn't put chakra into his attacks and while his punches still hurt, they didn't smash my bones. While he was throwing punches my way, I was able to study his fighting style a bit and found it was similar to Sasuke's. Itachi, like Sasuke, relied on his speed and agility to attack his opponent unlike Naruto who used a few powerful attacks to take an enemy down. He also had a calm demeanor, never showing emotions as he fought unless he was giving me pointers.

I became distracted in my observations and Itachi nailed me in the side with a hard punch "Focus, Sakura." I smiled sheepishly and nodded. He threw a string of kicks and jabs my way and in a moment of clarity I was able to dodge them all and stay on my feet...until he swept his leg under me and I fell to the ground.

"Ouch." I mumbled from the ground. Itachi held out his hand to help me up, and this time I took it.

"Why don't we take a little break, hm?"

"No, it's fine I can keep going!" He sighed.

"Training yourself to the point of exhaustion will only hurt you, Sakura. Break." His voice was now commanding so I followed him begrudgingly to a nearby tree.

"But, Tsunade and I train longer all the time." I muttered.

"Yes, and look at you."He took in my appearance, and I knew exactly what he saw. My body was littered with cuts and bruises that still hurt from yesterday and even though I took a shower I knew my hair was still a mess. It was too short now to pull it back into a ponytail. _Maybe I didn't think my little haircut through as well as I thought... _" Don't take this the wrong way...but you look like you got into a fight with a bear, and lost." I smiled a little.

"Considering that "bear" was Tsunade...I'm just thankful to be alive."

He smirked."Is she really that bad?"

"Yeah, but I'm learning a lot."

"I'm glad to hear it's going well. I've been meaning to ask, but I haven't actually seen you since...well I think maybe a few months now."

"Mm, it's been a while. So..how have you been? You know, besides being decommissioned for a while?

He looked up in though for a moment. "I've been well, although..."

"Hm? Something wrong?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Well, my hiding spot was compromised."

"By who?"

"My cousin. You know, the loud one." I laughed as I knew exactly who he was talking about. Shisui Uchiha was as loud and annoying as they get, kind of an of oxymoron when it came to Uchihas. I had only met him a few times, always with Itachi or Sasuke there as well, and I found him to be a good guy. That is if you could get past his constant jokes and crazy character, and by dealing with Naruto for so long, I found that easy. Despite his constant drive to irritate Itachi, they were very close and Shisui was devoted to his cousin as well as his clan.

"Did he reveal you hiding spot or something?"

"No, I know he would never do that. He is my best friend, but it is impossible to read around him." I laughed at this. Shisui and Itachi were the best of friends and were closer in age than Itachi's younger brother, so I suppose they would have more in common, but I couldn't disagree with his statement.

"So, you find a new place to read yet?"

"Not yet. I choose the library because I didn't think anyone would go there...especially Shisui. He doesn't even like to read...he just followed me in and made fun of me for hiding." I giggled.

"It's not funny. I need my quiet time."

"Of course," I said trying to be serious. "it's not funny." I couldn't keep the smile off my face though.

We fell into a silence after that- not an awkward one, but there wasn't anything else for us to say either. I laid my head on my arms and closed my eyes, Itachi pulled a book out of his pocket. Looking at him from the side, he reminded me of Kakashi at that moment, always a book saved somewhere on his person. Thinking of the team depressed me a little and a frown pulled at my brow. I couldn't help the flash of memories that appeared behind my eyelids. The academy, Naruto bridge, the Chunin exams, and odd moments spent on our little red bridge where we met every day.

"Are you alright, Sakura?" My head jerked up at Itachi's voice and I quickly flashed a smile.

"I'm fine. Why do you ask?" He raised his eyes brows in a knowing look. "I'm fine really...just thinking." I went back to resting my eyes and thoughts of the boys.

"Are you thinking about Sasuke and Naruto?" I winced as a response to his knowing of everything. "You want to talk about it?" Talking about them out loud would probably help...but it would be painful more than anything.

"Not partially, no."

"Alright. How are things at home then?" He just had to pick the only other subject I'd rather be punched by Tsunade than talk about. He much have sense this as well, "Not so good then. Come on Sakura. Talk."

"Why?" I mumbled into my arm. "What's the point?"

"The point is," he shut his book, "you're upset. Holding on to things that upset you ruin your concentration. How am I supposed to help you train if you're distracted?" It was a liable reason, but it still didn't make me want to talk. I resorted to glaring at nothing as he stared me down from the side. I had become immune to his brother's glares, but Itachi's glace was another thing entirely. Sasuke would glare down at you until you got scared or intimidated enough and did what ever he said, but Itachi's just made you feel...guilty somehow. Like it was just wrong not to give into to him. I held on for another minute until I could just feel his eyes on me even though I glanced in a completely opposite direction.

"Please stop looking at me like that." I begged.

"Not until you talk to me. That also means no more training until you do. Or," He said smartly, "I could just and tell Tsunade-"

"You wouldn't!" I yelled.

"How sure are you?" He grinned wildly, much like Tsunade. _Oh my god he would._

"...That's so not fair, Itachi."

"Did I say it was?" I glared at him for a few moment before I concluded that it was useless. Itachi was stubborn and he would give up until he got what he wanted, he was an Uchiha after all.

"Alright...if you absolutely must know, my mother and I have been fighting a lot, okay?" I let in to his demands but I refused to look at him.

"About?" He egged on.

"My training...she wants me to give it up."

"She said that?"

"Not those exact words. She thinks that I should just give up being a ninja now that my team is gone and I should move on." I had to stop to control my breathing. Every time I so much as thought of the arguments, my blood pressure rose. "She just wants me to be a civilian like her. She's jealous."

"Oh? How so?" He asked.

"I'm not part of her life anymore, and the way I'm going that won't change. I know we don't see each other as much as we used to, or should, but I'm busy!" I had lost control of my anger pretty quickly and began pacing. "I have my training and...and since when is that a bad thing? I'm learning to help people! I'm learning to save lives and it makes me happy! Why can't she just let me be happy?!"

"Of course she wants you to be happy, Sakura." Itachi tried to reason.

"Then why would she ask me to quit "_this nonsense!" _I mocked her tone. "And why would she throw Dad's death in my face?!" Itachi looked at me sadly and I clamped my mouth shut after that. I didn't want to go any further down that road, it would only make things worse.

"Your father died in combat?" He asked slowly. I nodded and avoided his eyes. He tried to get me to sit next to him again, but I stood stubbornly. Itachi sighed. "I know it seems like she doesn't want you to be happy Sakura but she's really just protecting you." _WHAT?!_

"Are you taking her side?!"

"I'm not taking sides, Sakura." He said trying to calm me down. "She's your mother and she doesn't want you to get hurt, give her some credit. She's your mother, she's supposed to want to protect you every minute of the day." _And here comes the guilt. Damn him. _I slumped beside the tree with a groan.

"Why do you always have to be right?" I mumbled. He patted my shoulder.

"Because someone had to be the voice of reason. Now, do you want to fight with your mother?" I shook my head. "Well then. You need to explain to her how you can't give up your training. It may be hard...but she is still your mother and will understand."

"You're sure about that?" He rubbed the back of his head. "I see..."

"You don't know if you don't try. Just try to keep calm and talk." _Easier said than done._

"Fine. But what if she still doesn't understand? What then?" He didn't have an answer for that one and I felt even more discouraged. "I'm just tired of arguing at this point." I muttered.

"You can at least hope for the best..." Silenced fell again and he didn't say anything for a long time. Until finally, "You know, Sasuke didn't get along with our father either." I didn't feel like talking anymore so I just glared at the ground, he continued anyway, "He swore up and down Father went out of his way to make him miserable. I suppose he did have a bit of pressure on him as he was always compared to me but...he is still our father no less." I still didn't respond, but softened my glare a bit. I knew Sasuke and his father weren't too close, and I had heard him say similar things to what Itachi said. "You know what I told Sasuke every time he claimed Father was being hard on him? I told him that no matter what Father is only being harsh because he cares about him and always wants the best for his son-and it's true- my father has told me many times. He always tell me how proud he is of Sasuke."

From this little story I now understood why Itachi even bothered to have this conversation with me, why he accepted Tsunade's proposal, and why he had encouraged me not to give up. It was Sasuke. They way his eyes looked when he spoke of his brother...it was the same look I had when ever I thought of my team. He had lost his little brother as I had lost my team mate. It was no secret Sasuke looked up to his older brother and wanted nothing more but to follow in his foot steps, and for years this is exactly what he did. Now, he was missing from not only my life, but Itachi's as well. There was no shadow following his every move, there was no one looking to him for advice.

"You miss him...don't you?" I murmured.

"Very much so..."

"Did Sasuke ever believe you? About your father I mean?"

He laughed. "Not in the slightest. But you are more rational than him, I think. So you might take to my advice better." I smiled, but only just. I wanted to believe what Itachi said, not only for my sake but for his as well. He wanted someone to guide, I saw that now, and maybe...maybe I needed him as well. I needed one of my boys back more than anything...and here was Itachi, trying his best to comfort me in his own way.

"Can we get back to training now?" I asked quietly.

"That depends..."

"I'm not promising anything." I muttered. "But I can try to follow your advice...it we get back to training."

He sighed once more. "I suppose that is the best I'm going to get, isn't it?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Alright. Let's get started then." He helped me up once more. "Okay, you have good evading skills, but you could improve. I can teach you how to predict an enemy's movements..." He dived into a lesson about studying people movements so I could not only dodge attacks but reciprocate with some of my own in the best way. We went on for hours and hours learning step by step how to predict movements and react to them, with Itachi's Sharingan this was easy for him to explain.

I found Itachi to be a good teacher. He never lost patience and didn't mind explaining things several times if needed, he also never let me get discouraged for long. If I failed to do something right, he politely corrected me and helped me try again. I worked on blocking Itachi's moves by sensing where he would go and then attacking back, I became increasingly better at it. He did have to slow down quite a bit from his normal speed but it was a small victory no less each time I was able to stay on my feet when he attacked.

"That's enough for today." I was slightly panting and very tired, but I had received no injuries besides I few new bruises, which was a great considering yesterday's workout. I relaxed my stance and gave a thankful nod. "You alright?"

"Yep, just a little tired. I'll be fine"

"Good, then why don't see Tsunade together? She wanted to hear how the first day went."

"Alright. Let's go." We walked out of the training grounds and took a route much similar to mine yesterday, I could tell Itachi walked for my benefit only but he didn't seem to mind. We opted to cut through a park instead of taking the busy streets. The sky was clear and trees were green on this lovely spring day, many children played and ran around under the watchful eyes of their parents. I knew this area well and had spent much of my childhood here. It was where I made my very first friend, a fiery blonde girl who knew everything there was about flower arrangements- and taught me all about them as well. My family used to picnic here often before my father's death, right over on a hill, under a group of yearly blooming Sakura trees for which I was namedt. It was also where I met two very special boys who would later change my life forever...

_"HEY! STOP IT, YOU JERK!"_

_The loud voice shattered my concentration and I closed my book with a sigh. I had been sitting on a bench near the playground for almost an hour waiting for my mother to pick me up. __She must have had to work late again..._

_"I will not! You're just an idiot!" __What could they possibly be fighting about? __Placing my book aside, I climbed down from the cold stone bench and faced the two arguing boys, both around the age of five or six. One had wild yellow hair that stood out in all directions and had the brightest blue eyes. The other boy was near the exact opposite; he had pure black eyes that hardly distinguished the iris from the pupil and almost as dark spiky, short hair. I didn't know either of their names, but I might have seen them once or twice before._

_"I AM N-"_

_"What are you guys doing?" I interrupted the blonde's cry. The two boys turned around to face me, the blonde immediately gave a warm smile while the other one glowered and said:_

_"It none of you're business!" I stepped back a bit, alarmed by his hostility._

_"See! I told you you're a jerk!" The blonde accused. He turned to me with another smile. "Don't worry about him, he's always grumpy." I looked to the dark haired boy as he muttered "Am not."_

_"Well...okay then. Sorry I bothered you, I guess." I turned around to walk back to my waiting place, but the loud one called out once more._

_"Hey, come back! What's your name?" I glance at him curiously as no one ever really took any interest in me. Ino was my only friend and she was always the one to be talking and interacting with others while I stood in the back ground. I shuffled back from foot to foot as the boy kept smiling encouragingly at me._

"_Well?" The darker boy asked, "What, you can't think of your own name?"_

"_I-it's Sakura." I mumbled at the ground. _

"_Well nice to meet 'ya, Sakura! I'm Naruto! Oh, yeah and the jerk over there is, Sasuke."_

"_Stop calling me that, idiot!" The argument started up again and I was completely forgotten. I felt awkward just standing there but all in all it was a pretty funny sight. Two completely opposite six year olds fighting over who was the biggest jerk/idiot, and I couldn't help but giggle. Eventually my giggles turned into full brown laughter and I had to clutch my sides. Both boys turned to me at the sound of my laughter._

"_EH? What's so funny?!" Naurto asked._

"_Y-you *laugh* guys are *giggle* hilarious!" I gasped out between breaths. Sasuke, (A.K.A. "The Jerk) continued to glare at me but Naruto joined in laughing. After the two had finally put aside their differences (if only for a few minutes) Naruto asked me to play with them. As said, Ino was my only friend so I was rather hesitant to accept, but his puppy-like eyes were hard to refuse. We ran about playing various games (even the glowering Sasuke enjoyed a game of hide-and-seek) for what seemed like hours until a boy some years older than us approached and called to Sasuke._

"_Sasuke, it's time to go. Oh, did you make some new friends?" The boy looked to be in his early teens and quite similar to Sasuke, except his hair was much longer and had a lighter air about him than the glowering young boy._

_Sasuke snorted at the word "friends" but introduced us no less. "That's Naruto, and that's Sakura. We were just playing, that's all." Naruto and I giggled at his denial, which earned us a small glare._

_The older boy only smiled. "Well it's nice to meet you, I'm Sasuke's older brother, Itachi."_

"_Nice to meet you." Naruto and I chorused. _

"_Okay Sasuke time to go home. Say good bye to your friends." He gave a nod at Naruto and I and left with the younger boy in tow. Sasuke seemed to brighten up around the older boy, jumping up and down and asking a bunch of questions as the two faded into the distance. Naruto and I eventually resorted to playing on the swing set with our other playmate gone._

"_So, Sakura," Naruto started, "Why were you here alone?"_

"_My mom works and sometimes there's no one to watch me so I come here until she comes and gets me. What about you? Where are your parents?" He frowned and looked down at his lap. He didn't need to tell me, I could tell he didn't really want to talk about it. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset you."_

_The blonde smiled again though, all sadness forgotten. "It's okay!" __Nothing really bothers him does it?_

_We swung for a little longer until he said "Well...I gotta get going too! I'm going to get ramen at this place, Ichiraku's. You wanna come, Sakura?" Naruto glanced at me excitedly._

"_No, that's okay, my mom should be coming to get me soon and I have to stay in the park." He looked sad, but again his expression quickly brightened._

"_Well okay! Hey, it was nice to meet you, we should hang out again sometime, Sakura-chan!" I had only heard three people in the world who had ever referred to me as "Sakura-chan," one of them was dead._

"_Yeah, that sounds like fun! Bye, Naruto." He waved and ran off towards the streets away from the park. My mother didn't show up to take me home until I had already finished my book, a good hour later..._

Looking back, I suppose I had met _three _special boys that day. I glanced sideways at Itachi, he was focused on the pathway before him but glanced my way when I noticed me.

"What is it?" He asked curiously. _He probably doesn't even remember. No big deal._

"Oh, nothing." I smiled and turned my attention to the road. While memories of Naruto and Sasuke usually depressed me, remembering how we had come together lightened my spirits some what. Seven years later those boys hadn't changed one bit, fighting every two seconds and only stopping when I stepped in. And then there was Itachi, still as calm and polite as the day we met. They were all still the same...it was me who now needed to change and I would gladly do so. "You wanna pick up the pace?" I asked him.

"Sure, let's go." We ran past the numerous families and all the way to Hokage tower. Inside, it was messy and more busy that I had ever seen it. Various ninjas alike were rushing around up and down the stairs carrying paperwork and scrolls, one was transporting many sake bottles. "Do you think we should come back later-"

"Oh hi, Sakura, Itachi!" Shizune, Tsunade's other apprentice rushed towards us, a mountain of paper in her arms. "Tsunade has been waiting for you two, go ahead up. And will you take these up to her? Thanks!" She shoved the papers into Itachi's arms and ran off somewhere.

"Well...lets go up there then." We walked up the stairs, dodging people along the way. Even from down the hall, I could hear Tsunade's yelling, and then a few crashes.

"She is not happy." Itachi commented.

"She hates paper work" I muttered thinking about all the times Shizune had to cry and plead with her to finish her duties. We were both very hesitant to open her door, but since Itachi had his hands full, I had the pleasure. I creaked open the door a few inches and watched for bottles being thrown at the door. "Tsunade-sama?" No answer. I opened the door a few more inches. "Tsunade-" A kunai hit the door frame, sinking into the wood a few inches.

"WHAT IS IT?! I'M VERY BUSY!" I yelped and stepped back, but Itachi nudged me inside.

"It's Itachi and Sakura, Tsunade-sama. Can we come in?" he asked cautiously.

"Oh...yes. Come in." I walked inside hesitantly still, and watched for more weapons. She sat at her desk which was covered fully by scrolls and paper, what ever free space left contained alcohol. "So, how did it today go?" She asked her eyes were focused on a scroll before her and she was scribbling like mad.

"Very well, right Sakura?" Itachi placed his mountain of papers on a filing cabinet and looked to me. At first I didn't answer.

"Sakura?" Tsunade asked impatiently.

"Yes, it went very well. No problems, Itachi is a very good teacher."

"Good! I knew I could count on you, Itachi. I do not know how long this will continue, but until then you are completely in charge of her, is that clear?"

"Of course, Tsunade-sama. It will be no trouble. Are we excused?"

"Yes, yes! Get out, I'm busy." We didn't waste another moment, we bowed and quickly left the building.

"Wow, no wonder she can't train me at the moment...did you see all that paper work?" I said when we were outside once more.

"I wouldn't want to be in her potion right now." He looked up to the sky. The blue was just turning darker, it couldn't be later thann five in the afternoon. "You should go home and rest."

"Alright. So...I'll see you Monday?"

"Hn." I almost laughed at his response, he raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"Nothing. Now I know where Sasuke gets it from." I turned around without waiting for his reply. "See you later!" I called over my shoulder. I heard him chuckle and a quiet "Goodbye" and his chakra signature was gone. I walked home with a smile, even with knowing that later I would have to see my mother. My boys were gone...but someone else had appeared.

**To be continued**

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3: Roles Reversed

**Hello again! Thank you all so much for the nice reviews, favorites and follows! I hope you guys like the little 'surprise' in the chapter! **

Chapter three: Roles Reversed

"Alright, Shikamaru. You're good to go."

The boy gave a drawling sigh, "Thanks, Sakura." _Wow even when he's trying to be thankful he sounds bored. _I gave a wave to the spiky haired boy and left the exam room, the hallway was bustling with activity even though it was only ten in the morning. Doctors, ninja and civilian alike, fluttered about from room to room checking on their patients in a hurry, clipboards in hand. It was flu season, so the hospital was at it's busiest of the year, I must have given shots to half the people in Kohona by now. I had finished my rounds early so I now had plenty of time to finish my paper work. _Note to self: never make fun of Tsunade for procrastinating again. Paper work sucks. _

I stifled my groans and headed into the staff lounge for a quiet place to work, there were a few nurses drinking coffee at a table along with a couple interns here and there taking their break. I didn't know all of them by name, but that wasn't surprising considering how large the hospital was and how big the staff had to be to keep it afloat. One familiar face smiled happily when she glanced in my direction.

"Hey, Forehead! How's it going?" Ino laughed and nudged my shoulder.

"Same as always, Pig." I smiled fondly at my best friend, with Sasuke gone there was nothing left for us to fight over and we gradually began talking again. Looking back, I sometimes couldn't believe I went on hating her for a long as I did, it seemed like we picked up right where we left off...silly nicknames and all. Our friendship really took off when she began her internship at the hospital and we often spent out breaks together or covered for each others shifts.

"So boring day then?"

"Yep." I replied. Ino grinned and pulled me over to a couch in the corner of the room. "So what have you been up to then? How did it go with Kiba?" The blonde blushed slightly at the reference to the dog-boy.

"It went okay! I mean he's an idiot...but he's a _cute _idiot, so all went well in the end." I rolled my eyes at her answer. While there was no disputing Kiba's good looks, I had no idea how she put up with his antics. "Oh sure roll your eyes, at least I have a boyfriend!"

"Ouch, Pig, that hurt." We both laughed. "Yes, well excuse me for focusing on my career instead of boys."

"Oh? No boys, eh?" She said grinning evilly. "What about Itachi? You sure hang out with him a lot." I stuttered at her accusation.

"I-I do not! We _train _together. There's a difference!" Even after Tsunade had returned as my sensei, Itachi and I had fell into a routine and trained when he wasn't on missions and I didn't have anything with Tsunade.

"Mm-hmm." She didn't sound convinced. "And you two sitting under a tree in the park? What kind of training is that?" I glowered.

"Okay fine, _sometimes _we see each other besides training. We were just relaxing in the park _after training_, Ino. No big deal." Itachi had taken up new "hiding places" in various locations around the park and we rather often did meet each other, but I wasn't going to tell her that, she'd blow it up into a whole new situation. She smirked at me for a long while and I knew exactly what she was thinking. "No." I said sternly.

"No what?" She batted her eyes innocently.

"You know damn well 'what'." I commented. "I have more work to do, see you later Pig." I got up from the couch and walked out the door in a hurry.

"Oh come on! Don't be like that, Forehead!" I could hear her laughter all the way down the hall. _Damn, Pig. Making something out of nothing like usual. _So what if Itachi and I enjoyed each others company other than the occasional training? _We are friends, that's what friends do right?_I shook my head to clear my thoughts and focused back on the hospital. _Work, that's what I should be doing. _As I wasn't going to get any work done in the staff room, I had to find another, more quiet work place. The third floor of the hospital had a few empty rooms as of late so I took one of the exam rooms as my temporary work place and began my paperwork.

Two hours later I had barely finished any work and had received a pounding headache. _**Well screw this, lets get out of here. **__For once we agree. _I gathered my files to complete later at home and headed downstairs to change out of my uniform. My current uniform was simple, just a red medic vest and white skirt over shorts, made for function and not fashion which is why most female doctors liked to dress it up with high heels-which was silly if you're on your feet all day.

I quickly changed into red shorts with a black t-shirt, clocked out for the day, and left the hospital. Fridays work days were short hours and with no training either I was free to do anything I wanted after twelve. The air outside was cool, but no too cold. A light breeze blew past me and I breathed in the fresh air, I love being in the hospital but sometimes the smell of disinfectant was just too much even for me. Being nice day, a walk through the village seemed like a relaxing idea that might clear my head.

Many of Kohona's citizens were walking about the streets as well, jumping from store to store buying various goods. The market district is one of my favorite places to be in the village, even if I didn't buy anything I just loved all the different things that came together. The smell of spices from all over Fire Country, the hundreds of different weapons made from scratch by the finest craftsmen, jewelry of all color and sizes, and of course the delicious food. I stopped at a food booth to buy a sweet bun and then continued on way way.

I didn't buy much else and mostly just browsed the various booths and their products as I ate my treat. I spoke with a few vendors that I reconsigned as former patients or family friends, working at one of the busiest placing in he village really helped you to know just about everyone after all. I was looking over a jade necklace when a hand tapped by shoulder. The chakra signature was familiar, and ninja, but I couldn't place it right of the back. I turned around to see a large man towering over me.

"Oh, hi Shisui-san, how are you?" Shisui gave a friendly smile and a wave.

"Hello, Sakura-san! I'm well, thank you for asking, and yourself?"

I grinned at his friendliness. Shisui was always very polite and could put a smile on anyone's face. "I'm good. So, what's up?"

"Well, I was wondering if you had seen Itachi today? I know you two often see each other and thought you might have come across him." My eye twitched as what he said was similar to what Ino had accused. _Do we really see each other that often? _

"Haven't seen him today, why?" I asked.

He rubbed the back of his head. "Well I saw him after a came back from my mission this morning and he look real upset and told me to leave him alone. More like growled at me really..."

"Really?" _That's strange. "_Oh, well like I said; I haven't seen him today." He sighed, aggravated.

"Mmm, well thanks anyway Sakura-san. See ya later."

I nodded quickly. "Of course, goodbye." He gave another wave and melted into the crowd of people, I frowned after he was out of sight. _I wonder what's got Itachi so upset he wouldn't even talk to Shisui? Did a clan meeting upset him that bad? _It was no secret Itachi didn't always agree with the politics of his family, in fact he rarely came out of a meeting not in a mood but he at least would talk to his cousin about what ever was bothering him. _Hm, I wonder if he is in the park? _I walked away from the many booths and people and followed the pathway to Kohona's biggest park.

As most days, the park was lively with families and little children running about playing games. I first scanned for Itachi's chakra signature, but I couldn't detect him in the least, he was either not in the park or hiding. I had little chance of finding him with my chakra if it was the latter. _Damn, now I have to search for him._ I looked around the park at the places he would most likely be; the trees across from the playground, the bench along a park trail, and a quiet grassy field separate from most of the busy park. He was nowhere to be found. _**Well this sucks. Where else could the man be? **_I had no clue of the answer.

I gave a sigh and sat on a stone bench. _Maybe I should just leave it be, he obviously doesn't want to be found... _He probably just needed some time to himself,yes. He does not need me bothering him- I jumped up from the bench. _Wait, what the hell am I saying?_ That jerk never left _me _alone where I wanted to be, why should I leave him be? He always bugs me into talking! With a new sense of determination, and a slightly annoyed attitude, I set out to find the seriously stubborn Uchiha.

I gave another quick look through the park to make sure I hadn't missed him, but I couldn't find him anywhere. I then checked the library, however the librarian said she hadn't seen him all day and nor had any other of the staff. Then there was the cafe where they made really good dango where we had gone after training a few times, but the results were the same as the first two attempts.

Hours later of fruitless search, I found myself back to where I started in the park. _**Well I'm out of ideas... **_Inner humphed and muttered obscenities_, _I stomped my foot in frustration as well and a few people nearby looked at me funny, but I ignored them.

"What's got you upset, Pinky?" I narrowed my eyes, only one person calls me that...

_Oh great. _"Hello, Konohamaru." I drawled. I wasn't too fond of the "mini Naruto" as I called him. He always wanted to challenge me to stupid little competitions as his former playmate was gone.

"Hey ya!" He gave a stupid grin quiet similar to my whiskered teammate. "Sooooooo, what's gotcha all mad?" I rubbed my eyes. _I don't have time for this right now..._

"I'm looking for Itachi right now, and he refuses to be found, so if you don't mind-"

"Oh! I saw him heading up to the Hokage Monument about an hour ago. He might still be there!" The small ninja grinned again and I put a tired hand to my face. _It was that easy? You have got to be kidding me! _

I sighed. "Thanks, Konohamaru. See you later." I bolted in the direction of the Hokage Monument before hearing the boy's reply. _That man! Making me worry and search the village for him, oh just wait! _I raced up the path that led to the carved mountain as fast as I could and made it to the top in about ten minutes.

There, sitting on the head of one of the great Hokages was a gloomy dark haired man. He no doubt felt my presence,and I had made no attempt to hide it, but he didn't turn around or even react to my sudden appearance.

From just glancing at him I could tell Itachi was very mad, which was strange for me. I had never seen him angry, annoyed yes but never _actually_ angry. He was always one to subdue his emotions and deal with all situations in a calm matter but right now made no attempt to suppress his attitude. His back was stiff and his shoulders were hunched. While his chakra was suppressed, anger just radiated off of him in furious waves. _**Damn he's scary when he wants to be! **_I snorted. _If he thinks he can scare me off he's got another thing coming. _

I walked over to where he sat, but he didn't look at me when I stood to the side of him nor when I said "Hello." Itachi just glared out into the distance and refused to acknowledge my presence, so I stood in front of him and bent to look at him at eye level. "Helloooooo? Earth to Itachi!" I waved my hand in front of his face, but still his expression remained in a glower towards Kohona. Standing erect I put my hands on my hips. "Are you really just going to ignore me? Oh that's real mature-"

"Go away, Sakura." His voice was soft, but temper flared and my right eye twitched in annoyance. _The nerve! _

"What?" I ground out through my teeth. He glance up at me briefly, then turned his head away.

"I said: Go away."_** The hell he just say to us?!**_I made no effort to keep Inner at bay and my temper exploded...just a bit.

"Go away? _Go away?! _Oh, so I see how it is; you can badger me none stop when I hide away and refuse to talk, but when you do it I have to leave you alone? Nope! That isn't how it works, Itachi!...Look at me when I'm talking to you!" I could see Itachi flinch at my harsh words just a little, I didn't know if it was out of shock or anger. I knew screaming at him wasn't the most effective method to get him to talk, but dammit I'm mad! I had never yelled at him in the past, there was never a need to. We always got along quite nicely and never once could I remember us arguing, but time and time again it seemed Itachi was there to force me into talking to him about my problems. It really upset, and even hurt me a little, that he flat out refused to even look at me.

I resorted to just glaring at the stubborn man in an effort to calm my anger and my breathing which had escalated to annoyed huffs._**Will you look at us you jerk?! Who do you think you are? **_Inner was still quite furious and I fought to keep her under control, I grit my teeth, took a big breath, and let my anger out with a sigh. While I was still extremely annoyed and felt like punching him, anger was not the best approach, so of course I resorted to guilt.

"Do you have any idea how long I have been looking for you?" I asked finally after I had calmed down enough.

Itachi looked away from my direction. "I didn't ask for you to look for me." _Why you little- No. Keep it cool. _

"Well that's too bad because I did. Shisui told me today that you looked upset, so I got worried and tried to find you since your not one to get overly upset. So? Do you enjoy making me worry?" He was silent again. I waited a minute to see if he would respond at all, when he didn't a fell to the ground next to him with and aggravated sigh. More minutes passed without any words between us, although he did seem to have calm down somewhat. "Why won't you talk to me, hm?" I asked quietly. "I thought we were friends..." He sighed and rubbed his face.

"We are friends, Sakura." Ha, guilt. I smiled at my small victory in getting him to talk.

"Then why won't you talk to me if you're upset?" I nudged his shoulder with mine when he didn't answer. "Hmm?" My anger had now faded away and disappointment replaced it. "Oh come on Itachi! How many times have you bullied me into talking huh? Isn't this a bit childish?"

"I did not "bully" you." He muttered.

"Oh yes you did." He rested his head on his hand and looking into the distance again. I knew he had to be upset about something very big for him to be the despondent and obviously didn't want to speak about it, so I went to the only other thing I could think of. "Pleeeeease?" I begged. "I don't want you to be angry, Itachi. You don't even have to tell me all the details! Just a little, and after...I'll buy you dango. How about that?" Itachi let out a big sigh before speaking.

"Are you really bribing me with food?" He said, turning his head to face me.

"Not just any food, your favorite!" I gave him a bright smile in an effort to cheer him up. Surprisingly his chuckled, but it was still a sad sound.

"I suppose you're right. It is a little childish to act this way." He didn't say anymore, I frowned.

"...Is it something to do with a clan meeting?" He nodded and clenched his jaw. "Can you tell me about it?"

"Not really. They just...they are making matters worse." I remember there being some tension between the Uchiha clan and the village elders recently and even Tsunade had been very annoyed with them as well, though I didn't know any of the details "I...I've tried to reason with them. But it seems as if they don't want to hear it at all. Every time it's the same, yelling and arguing about the same things." He clenched his fist. "I'm tired of it." I put a hand on his shoulder to try and calm him down.

"I'm sure you'll work it out." I said confidently. He glared at me harshly.

"How can you be so sure about that?"

"Because," I glanced out into the distance as Itachi had earlier. "you always do. You have a way in reasoning with people, Itachi. Hell, you can even get Tsunade to calm down enough to talk to her. That is no small task." I looked at him with a small smile. "I couldn't even stay mad at you for more than a few minutes. If they won't listen, then make them. Don't under estimate your ability to get people to listen to you."

"You make it sound so easy." He muttered. "My father is not one listen to other people, never has been. This time will be no different."

"Will you at least try? You are his son, after all."

"I'm tired of trying." He drawled. I looked more closely at him then. Dark shadows marred his eyes and the his facial lines seemed to cut even deeper into his skin than usual. This temperament issue hadn't come out of the blue, this family struggle had been going on for a while now and was beginning to take it's toll on Itachi. Now that his anger had dispersed, I could see the pure exhaustion that plagued him and I couldn't help the guilt for yelling at him earlier.

"Uh...I'm sorry for you know, screaming at you..." I mumbled.

"It's alright, I apologize for worrying you. It was rude to ignore you as well." I smiled to myself. _Still ever polite. _

"That's okay. If anyone deserves a little tantrum it's you." His rolled his eyes at the word "tantrum."

Silence ensued once more and we both focused our attention on the view. After some time I laid down on the ground and closed my eyes in thought. Itachi was still tense beside me, but had calmed down completely.

"I'm worried that I can't fix it this time." He murmured to me.

"And you shouldn't have to. It isn't your job to fix _everything _you know. There are some people you trust right? Ask them to help. It's okay to ask for help sometimes...you taught me that. Use your influence to your advantage." A guilty look cross his face.

"Using my own advice against me..." He sighed. "You're becoming too much like Tsunade." He murmured. I laughed despite the depressing circumstances.

"That what they tell me." I smiled and stood up. "Come on, I promised you dango didn't I?" Itachi looked up at me with a tired expression, a slight frown on his lips. "Alright, how about _two _orders of dango?" I gave him my most innocent smile. "Please?"

"I don't think I'm up for it right now, Sakura."

_Fine, I'll play hard ball. _"Oh, well...okay." I pouted and looked sadly at my feet. "I'm mean, it's not like I used my _entire_ afternoon off to look for you for hours or anything...all worried and what not. Don't worry about it. I guess I'll just-"

"_Alright._" Itachi stood up with a glare. "You really know how to guilt trip people, don't you?"

"Well if I can't intimidate you like you can me, what else am I supposed to do?" He rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration and didn't answer, I giggled and pulled on his sleeve. His eyes glanced into mine tiredly. "Next time-save yourself some frustration and just talk to me, okay?" I didn't wait for an answer and pulled him down the trail of Hokage Mountain and buy Itachi his sweet fix.

XXXXXXXX

(Itachi's POV)

Sakura made good on her word and ordered two plates of dango for us to share. She stayed quiet for most of the meal, leaving me to my thoughts, which I was thankful for. It wasn't that she ever bothered me, but at this point I wasn't sure I could take much more talking with anyone with this splitting headache. Luckily, Sakura seemed to notice this and ate silently with a small smile on her face long enough to calm the pounding in m head for a bit.

I had to admit it was different for her to be seeking me out in my moment of distress. For one, I didn't usually have moments of distress and two; I was usually the voice of reason and helped Sakura to make her judgments. Then again, I suppose she had grown up quite a bit since Team 7 had left.

Observing her now, I could see just how much so. She had abandoned her childish attire and usually settled for something much more practical, her features had become more defined, and she usually maintained a mature demeanor-although her wild temper had only intensified rather than cooled. I chuckled to myself while remembering how she had just about screamed at me when I ignored her-that had to be another first for me.

"Huh? What's so funny over there?" Sakura pointed at me with a stick of dango accusingly.

"Hn. Nothing at all."

"Uh-huh." Her eyes narrowed but left it alone and continued snacking.

Then our waitress, just a moderate looking civilian woman donned in the cafe uniform and extremely high heels came by the table. "Can I get you anything else?" Her painted lips came to a wide smile.

"Nothing for me, thanks." Sakura politely declined, not that the waitress paid any attention to her.

"No thank you." I muttered under my breath while ignoring the woman's awestruck stare.

"Oh? Well don't hesitate to ask now, okay?" She gave a bright smile with a wink at me and strutted away to another table. Sakura followed the girl with her eyes, then came to look at me with a raised eyebrow.

"Well?" She asked.

"Well what?"

A cheshire grin appeared on her face. "She was pretty wouldn't you say?"

I shrugged. "I suppose."

"Oh come on! Every woman who comes your way completely fawns over you, but you don't even care one bit." She huffed.

"They just do that because they think I'm good looking, Sakura. Why would I be interested in something so shallow?" I rested my head on laced palms, she just rolled her eyes.

"And how do you know they are just that; shallow? That's judging books by their covers, Itachi." Sakura crossed her arms over her chest ans _tsked. _

I smirked at her. "What are you doing. Sakura? Trying to set me up on a date?"

"Of course not, it's just...I don't think I have _ever _seen you with a girl."

"I do not have time for such frivolous activities." I commented with a sip of tea.

Sakura deadpanned. "Now I remember why I don't see you with women...you say things like 'frivolous activities.'" I glared at her, but she only laughed at my narrowed eyes. That was another thing different about Sakura. She didn't falter under my gaze on a day to day basis like most, though I usually could intimidate her if I wanted to. "Forget about it then."

"I will." I said haughtily.

She glared at my smirk. "_Well this was fun_," She stated quickly changing the subject. "I got to get going though; I have paperwork to do." She stood up from he table after leaving the money for the meal, and before I could argue she said, "Nuh-uh-ah. My treat remember?"

I silenced my protests knowing full well it would be useless to argue against her. "Thank you, Sakura."

"Mm-hmm!" She turned to leave but then whipped back around. "Oh, and you might want to think about going to find Shisui, he seemed really worried about you as well. Okay?" I nodded. "Good! See 'ya later! And don't frown so much, you want those lines to get even deeper?" I waved goodbye, ignoring the hot-tempered girl's poking fun and she left in a swirl of pink hair. _I do not frown that much. _

I finished up the rest of the syrup covered dumplings and left the small cafe, ignoring the waitress's offerings to get a drink later. _When will these women understand that fawning looks tacky? _I sighed and pushed away thoughts of women and sweets, they were quickly replaced by my former worries. _Sakura really made it sound too easy. "Ask them to help." How can I ask them to go against my father? _My breathing became strained once more and I struggled to calm down again. I mentally cursed my father for making my usually calm temperament morph into a hot-tempered mess. _Calm down, I'll get this sorted. _

I took another calming breath and jumped up to the rooftops of the city streets and became racing towards the Uchiha compound. It was now late afternoon and the sun was making it's way to west. The winds brought a nice breeze through the warm fall weather, today had been a bit warmer than most and it was a welcome change. The compound came into view just above the buildings and I jumped down into the walkway below. The guard bowed his head to me, nodding my head back I walked into the Uchiha housing which was still busy for the day. The Uchiha clan was the largest in Kohona, rivaling the Hyuga clan, but I knew everyone by name, relation, and rank in the clan hierarchy. Most bowed their head to me as I passed but I few came and spoke to me politely, asking about how my parents were doing and if I had heard from Sasuke.

I tried to close the conversations as quickly and politely as possible as I wished nothing more to sleep off my headache. _Some people_ though ignored my tired look and talked as loudly as possible.

"Hey-ya, cousin!" Shisui slapped my shoulder. "Done with your scary moment?" He grinned widely.

I was ready to just ignored him and transport myself to my home but Sakura's words again interrupted my thoughts. _"Oh, and you might want to think about going to find Shisui, he seemed really worried about you as well. Okay?" _I sighed in defeat.

"Yes." I muttered.

"Ah, I see the little cherry blossom found you then?" I snapped my head in his direction. "Yes I did tell her about your little grumpy attitude so she would go and talk to you."

"Why?" I asked.

"Well for one-you're damn scary when you're mad! I wasn't going to risk my ass!" He burst out laughing at his own joke. Noticing my harsh glare, Shisui continued on a more serious note. "I thought Sakura would be able to calm you down more than I could at the moment. She's either too adorable to deny, or too hot tempered to argue with. Either way, she was my best bet in making sure you didn't murder someone in your fit of rage."

His reasons made perfect sense, but they still irritated me somewhat me. Had I become so influenced by the young strawberry haired girl? I knitted by eyebrows together in thought.

"Hm? Don't look so confused, Itachi! You do spend a lot of your free time with her after all."

"Do I?" I asked, not putting any energy into my voice.

"Yep!" _Is that so? _I suppose I couldn't deny his claim. There was no other person that I could think of, besides Shisui of course, that I would willingly spend as much time is I do with Sakura. Especially a female. Sakura wasn't exhausting to be around as I found most people to be nor did she treat me differently because of my family name-which I was greatly thankful for. I suppose that is because she had spent so much time around Sasuke. "Mm, well since that is taken care of I'll leave you. See you later, cousin!" He walked away happily towards his home as always. I don't think I have ever seen him without a smile on his face.

I was left to think about what Shisui had said about Sakura and I. Truthfully, I didn't put much thought into our meetings, and I'm sure neither did she, we now only trained once in a while when neither of us were busy with our work and sometimes relaxed in the park after a training session. I had taken quite a liking to our spars, it was always a nice chance to get away from my clan pressures and I actually enjoyed teaching Sakura a few pointers here and there. She was always willing to learn and picked up anything quite quickly. And of course it was hard for anyone to be in a bad mood when the smiling girl was around, I had found myself to be no different.

"I really can't believe she yelled at me though." I muttered to myself. I stepped through the door way of my home and took off my shoes, leaving them there.

"Itachi, is that you?" My mother called from inside the living room.

"Yes, Mother." I traveled past the kitchen and into the large living room where Mikoto Uchiha sat lounging on a couch, reading.

"Ah, there's he is! Where have you been all day?" I shrugged and sat at the end of the couch. "Mm, so it was that type of meeting then?" I nodded wearily. "Ah, well." She patted my head affectionately. "Are you hungry?"

I smiled at her motherly question. "No I'm alright. Is Father home?"

"Yes, he is in the study. Don't fight with him now." She warned only halfheartedly.

"Yes, Mother." I left her to her book and walked down the hall to Father's study. I knocked on the door quietly as per usual, "May I come in, Father?"

"Hn." Called a deep voice from inside. That was his way of saying "yes" so I pushed open the door and stood in front of the large oak desk. Fugaku Uchiha sat glaring over several scrolls rolled out on the wide desktop, pen in hand. "What is it, Itachi?" His voice was commanding and cold. "Is it about this morning's meeting? If so-"

"I have to ask you to reconsider." I interrupted, Father glared at my outburst but I didn't apologize.

"My decision was final." He went back to his scrolls and my jaw clenched.

"You're making a mistake. You are going to get people killed." I growled.

"I am protecting this clan," he ground out. "where do your loyalties lie first, Itachi? With your _family_, or Kohona?" I didn't say anything. "That's what I thought. Now you can-"

"No."

"Excuse me?" Father stared at me in disbelief.

"I said "no," Father. I will _not_ see another pointless war. You think you are protecting this family, but you're killing it. Do you really think we will come out of this without any casualties? Do you really think it is below Kohona's elders to order the killing of the women and children of this clan?" Fugaku eyes lit up blood red in anger.

"And how do you suppose we deal with this issue then? Let our family's pride just slip away?!"

"I don't know or care at the moment. But hear this: leave it alone. This action _will_ start a war and it _will _kill many innocent people. Is your pride worth that much?"

He stood up forcefully. "We can take this, Itachi. We are prepared-"

"Prepared for what? Kohona's entire ninja force? All of ANBU? Do you really believe Danzo will stand behind us in this? No matter what you say...I will not fight this war, and I'm sure I can get many people convinced of the same." We stared each other down for a few moments before Fugaku sat back down.

"When did you become so defiant, Itachi?" He growled.

"When you decided to declare war. But if you still feel so sure about your decision, why don't I go and ask around the compound if they feel the same? Shisui, Suki and her children...Mother."

He gave one last aggravated sigh, if anything would deter him from this plan of action it would be his wife. "What do you suppose we do then, hm?"

"Wait. We need to plan out a better move. One that doesn't cost lives." Father's jaw set and he continued to glare at me for a few more moments before he finally-and thankfully- complied.

"Fine. We shall wait-_for now. _But a new solution needs to be put into action, Itachi. And soon."

"Of course, Father. Thank you for reconsidering." Now that he had changed his mind, I had to be sure to choose my words very carefully as not to upset him. His eyes were already back on the scrolls and hand scrawling angrily on the paper as he dismissed me.

"Hn. Go." I bowed and quickly left the room and flew up the stairs to my bedroom. _Done, it's done. _I let out a giant breath. I had never once defied my father, not until something like this. _How could he even suggest something like this? Does he not remember? _I laid on my bed, not bothering to change out of my clothes. _I can't remember ever feeling this exhausted. _I closed my sore eyes for just a moment, in minutes I fell into a deep sleep.

XXXXXXXXX

I was still tired when I awoke, but I didn't want to run into my father so I hurried out of the house early the next morning through my window. _This is ridiculous, I can't avoid the man forever_. Rubbing my tired eyes I walked slowly out of the Uchiha compound. A nap in the park. That will do just fine. Outside of the house, I wouldn't have anyone bothering my sleep.

Saturday was a busy day in the park, many families picnicked on the grassy lawns and dogs ran about with their owners fetching various toys. I traveled along a quieter part of the park where most people didn't go; on the far east side of the park was a secluded hill, perfect for a peaceful get away. I ran into a certain pink haired kunoichi on the way.

"Well hello again, Itachi." She smiled brightly. Sakura carried a couple of bags of what seemed to be groceries and was attired in black pants and a simple blue vest, so I supposed today would be her day off.

"Good morning, Sakura." Her eyebrows raised.

"Oh? You seemed to be in a much better mood today! I guess it went well then?"

I sighed thoughtfully. "I suppose you could say that. All is well." _For now _I added mentally.

"Mm, well good. See? It wasn't that hard now was it?" I didn't answer. "_Now was it?_"

"Yes, Sakura. You were right, is that what you wanted to hear?" She grinned.

"Yep! Okay well you look exhausted, I'll see you later okay?"

"Alright, goodbye." We waved goodbye and she went on her marry way. I watched her go. _Would she have been forced to fight? She's plenty old enough by war standards. Would my family be the cause of her death? _The simple idea caused anger to burn inside me. I couldn't watch someone so young and innocent as Sakura be killed in something as horrible as war, her life had barely begun. Ninja didn't live long, but that wasn't an excuse. I made a mental promise to myself to to let that happen, not to her.

Sakura continued down the cobble path with a smile on her face, not knowing the danger that was just barley avoided not just 12 hours ago. And I did what I could. I took my well deserved nap, and made sure my father didn't go back on his word.

**To be continued**

**This chapter was more ItachiXSakura centric. So there you have it, some of it from Itachi's POV. Yes? No? I found it tiring to have the story from only one POV. I'd really like to hear what you think! Thanks for reading! **


	4. Chapter 4: A Bleeding Past

**Hello again! I'm very sorry for the longer update time, I have been so busy and will try to make the next chapter faster! I made this one a little bit longer to make up for it! **

Chapter 4: A Bleeding Past and a Bright Future

"Hey, Sakura. I want to ask you something." I grunted in acknowledgment at Tsunade's comment and continued reading the document on the desk. "Sakura look up." I continued in my work and didn't pay attention until she grabbed the scroll out of my hands with a snort.

"Hey! If _you're_ not going to get any work done at least let me finish something around here." I chastised.

"You work to much." Tsunade stuck her tongue out at me. "Now listen, it's been two years since I took you as my apprentice...and I've been thinking..." My brow pulled into a concerned look.

"Thinking about what?" I said worriedly, my shishou only laughed.

"Oh wipe that look off your face it's nothing terrible." She chuckled. "It just, well-you are always working at the hospital and if you're not there you're training with me or Itachi."

"And your point is?" I tried to snatch the scroll out of her hands but she hid it under the desk.

"My point is that I think you need a break from all that and need to do something else,something productive. You have excelled in your medical training, faster than any one of my students, and you could stand to cut back on the training with me along with a few hospital shifts."

I sighed. _What is she getting at?_ "What do you suggest as this so called "break" of yours?" Tsunade gave a sad smile.

"Well Genma has an opening in his three-man cell, unfortunately one of his students was killed in an ambush a few weeks ago "

"Oh, well. That's a shame." I murmured.

"Yes and you know how we are already short on teams and I would really hate to have to put his team out of commission for any longer than absolutely needed. I suggested you as a replacement and Genma eagerly agreed. It seems a medic is just what those rowdy boys need." _A new team? _I couldn't imagine going on missions with anyone except Team 7, which is why I denied any previous hints at this.

"Thanks for the offer but-"

She immediately cut me off. "It's been two years, Sakura."

"I know..." I looked down at my hands.

"It's not abandoning your team. Kakashi was planning on replacing you when they got back, as he probably assumes you resigned. And now- you have exceeded every one of his expectations. Do you want to be around a team who looked down on you? Especially when you and I both know you are capable of so much more." _Damn Kakashi. _It was true though, he had been expecting to replace me after the boys returned as he basically ordered me to resign, would he let me on the team seeing me now? Do I even want to be on a team where I wasn't wanted?

"So...you want me to be part of a new team?" I asked quietly.

"I think it would be for the best, you'll make new friends and finally go on missions again. You said you missed that didn't you?"

"Yes..."

"Well then! At least really think about it this time, okay?" She smiled encouragingly but I continued to frown. She rubbed her face with a sigh. "Look, Sakura, I know the thought of being on another team hurts, but I really do think it is the best. Team 7 will only hold you back now, Naruto and Sasuke are not good for you and you know it. Naurto will be the same over protective boy and Sasuke will be the same condescending jerk." Nothing I could say would convince her to drop it, or disprove any of her arguments.

"Alright...I'll think about it." She smiled brightly and then shooed me away with a hand motion.

"Now go on, go do something fun that doesn't involve work! I want your answer by tomorrow." I rolled my eyes but complied.

"Fine. See you tomorrow." Shizune then came in to yell at Tsunade for not doing her paperwork again and I left the building as quickly as possible before Tsunade pulled me into the argument. Stepping out of the chilly building and into the sunlight I stretched my sore joints until they popped. While my back felt better, I still frowned. _Another team? And Genma's at that? He probably has a team of perverts like him! Oh Kami, what am I to do?_ Gen,a wasn't a joke, he was an amazing ninja and former guard to the third but he was just so...teasing I suppose the word would be.

I couldn't deny I wanted so much to be on a team again, I missed going on missions and I missed my little "family." _**What "family?" They LEFT us. Why shouldn't we move on huh? Don't we deserve something good?**_

_That's not fair-Naruto and Sasuke went to train, it's Kakashi who left us-_

_**They ALL left us! Neither of them have sent any letters or contacted us in any way in two damn years! How is that not leaving us behind? **_I growled lowly to myself and pushed her out of my mind, not caring if she was right.

I shut off my brain for a few minutes and worked on autopilot to walk back to my home. The streets became a blur and I made sure Inner could no longer invade my thoughts, in the process I received a blaring headache. _Damn her and her stupid mouth! _I cursed my inner demon once more before unlocking my door with a little more force than necessary. No one was home as my mother had left to go and visit family in Suna, so I was on my own for a few weeks, I appreciated this fact more now than ever.

I chugged down some water and aspirin (not having the energy to do it with chakra) and willed my anger induced headache to go away. Sprawling on my living room couch, I closed my eyes and prayed for a long nap.

XXXXXXXXX

"Open the door, Sakura!" A muffled yell interrupted my dream (in which I repeatedly punched Kakashi into a tree) and I sat up on the couch with a groan. The visitor continued to yell and pound on the door.

"Alright, alright, I coming!" I screeched on the other side of the door, quickly disabling the chakra lock in place. The door flew open to reveal four masked men-one man supporting another with his shoulder. I recognized Itachi's chakra among the ANBU team with confusion. "What the hell-" The four stumbled into the house with out a response and I glared at the back of their heads. Stepping around them, I blocked their path with my arms.

"Out of the way." One man growled.

"_Excuse me? _If you haven't noticed, _you _barged into _my _home. I demand to know what the hell you are doing here."

"Listen you-" He began with a angry snort, but Itachi cut him off.

Itachi's shoulders were slumped in exhaustion as the other mens were and I could tell he was injured on his right side. "Sakura, I am very sorry for the intrusion but I need you to heal my team mate-"

"What am I, a clinic? Go to the hospital!" I yelled at him.

"Look- he's been poisoned and I don't think we have time to go all the way to the hospital. Please...will you heal him?" I glanced at the one who he obviously was talking about. I shoved by way past Itachi and put a glowing hand to the injured man. _It's already spread throughout the body..._

"Follow me." The men trailed behind me quickly into the extra bedroom I had converted into a lab. "Lay him on the bed and hold him down." I grabbed two basins and poison neutralizer and laid them on the table next to the bed.

"Why do we need to hold him down?" One unnamed ANBU member asked.

"Because poison removal is painful as hell- now do it!" The two uninjured men glanced at Itachi.

"Do as she says." He commanded. Only after their captain's approval did they finally hold my patient down. _Damn ANBU and their pretentious attitude. _I shoved away any thoughts not pertaining to the situation that lay at hand and concentrated chakra into my palm, laying it into the liquid filled basin.

"Alright, here we go." Searching for the first entry of the poison, I placed my hand over the area most concentrated with the contaminate. The man yelled and thrashed violently as the liquid sank into his body, Itachi and the remaining members of his team struggled in their tired attempt the hold the man still. I raised my hand back up, taking a large amount of the poison with it and placed the dark colored liquid in a separate basin.

"The poison has infected the internal organs. I'll need to preform a few more removals." I heard the poisoned Ninja groan at this, but I ignored it. _Morphine will have to wait. _My hand glowed green once more and I pushed neutralizer into his liver where more poised had pooled- of course more thrashing and yelling ensued. I preformed two more removals before enough poison had left the body to be deemed safe enough until an antidote was administered.

"Give me a few minutes to analyze the poison." The men all gave a small sigh of relief and stepped away from the bed. I didn't take long at all to identify the type of poison at hand. "You guys got lucky, it's a common plant based poison. Still deadly- but common enough that the antidote is usually not hard to make. I have all the ingredients on hand." I told them as I gathered the necessary materials from around the lab.

"So he'll be fine?" The man that had growled at me earlier asked. I had reminded myself his team mate was injured and that was the reason he was so rude before I answered.

I gave a small smile and nodded. "He will have to rest for a few days, but other than that he will be fine. I still recommend he get tested at the hospital though- just in case." He nodded at me slowly.

"Understood." The man murmured. The men awkwardly crowded around the bed of their team mate and I waved to the door over my shoulder. "You boys look tired, why don't you wait in the living room? This is going to take a few minutes and you should wait an hour or so before moving your team mate anyway."

"I think we would all prefer to stay with-"

"It's fine, you two go and rest, I'll stay here." Itachi said. The two members could not go against his orders so they both left the room after slight hesitation, one with a thankful nod while the other ignored me completely. When both sets of foot steps receded into the other room I gave a thankful sigh and proceeded to make the antidote.

"Take a seat, Itachi. I'll take care of your injury next." I murmured. I could hear the tired shinobi fall into a nearby seat and exhale loudly.

"Thank you for doing this, Sakura."

"Mm-hmm. Just stay still and try not to aggravate your wound." I glared over my shoulder at him.

He chuckled. "Yes miss medic." I rolled my eyes and continued my work. Within twenty or so minutes I had created the antidote and administered it along with some pain killers.

"Alright, your turn. Armor off." He took off his complicated ANBU body armor slowly and with painful grunts, I had to help him pull most of it off. "What happened?" I murmured while examining his bruised side.

"You know I can't tell you about ANBU missions, Sakura."

I laughed. "I was talking about your injured ribs, silly. You need to get out of Captain mode."

"Oh, right. Sorry. Explosive tag, a tree broke my fall. How bad is it?"

"I thought ANBU gave you guys medical training?" I teased.

"I'm not a medical genius like you, Sakura." I couldn't see his face due to the mask, but I could hear the smile in his voice.

"Well I wouldn't say "genius" as I'm still learning, but thanks."

"Your welcome." I focused on repairing his second and third rib. "You really saved my team today. I

take it I made the choice in bring my team here rather than the hospital?" Oh the smirk that must be on his face right now. I signed and pushed one of his ribs back in to place.

"Aren't you always right?" I grumbled.

"Mostly."

I flicked the side of his head. "Know-it-all." I packed up all the medical supplies in their rightful place while Itachi got dressed. "You really shouldn't move him yet." I motioned to the now unconscious ninja. "What do you want to do?"

Itachi put his hand to the side of his head with a sigh. "We need to report back to head quarters, but my team needs rest-"

"I'll go and report." A bird like mask interrupted the conversation. "I'm not hurt, you and Snake can wait here and rest with Tiger if you want- that is if Miss Haruno will allow it." I was surprised to find out this man knew who I was, even more surprised he was asking my permission to stay here. Most ANBU just did what they wanted. Itachi looked to me.

"It would be a big help, but I understand if-"

"No, no, it's fine." I glanced at the bird mask. "You are sure you're not injured?"

"I am fine, thank you Miss Haru-"

"Please," I interrupted, "call me Sakura" The man nodded.

"Alright, thank you, Sakura-san." _Close enough._

"Thank you, Wolf. Please go and report. I will have Tiger moved to the hospital at a later time."

"Hai, Captain." Than man bowed and exited in a cloud of smoke. It was quiet for a few more moments, and when the smoke finally cleared I exhaled loudly.

"Well, now that's taken care of why don't we see what your other team mate is up to?" Itachi followed me out of the lab with a nod and into the living room where "Snake" stood. He was quiet a tall man, rivaling Itachi's height, and looked very out of place in my mother's dreadfully 'girly' decorated living space. "Please feel free to sit and make yourself at home." I spoke with a soft smile, yet my offer went untouched without so much as a word. "Okay then." I muttered to myself.

I decided to ignore the awkward situation and retreated into the kitchen to make tea. I knew neither of the men would probably drink it (at least in my presence due to the masks) but it was a gesture that might break even a small amount of the tension. The smell of jasmine quickly filled the room and relaxed me somewhat. Quiet murmurs came from the other room but they ceased as I entered through the door way. Snake had taken a seat on the couch as had Itachi.

"Here's some jasmine tea, I'll go check on your team mate."

"Thank you, Sakura." I gave a small smile and left the two men be. I knew the poisoned man was still fine and on his way to a speedy recovery, but I didn't want to be back in that room. I didn't belong out there will the two ANBU. _Wow, misplaced in my home. _I thought to myself sadly.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you sure we can trust her, Captain?" Snake muttered as Sakura left the room.

I gave a weary sigh. "Sakura is to be trusted, she is the Hokage's apprentice and a excellent medic." It was completely in his character to be so untrusting of Sakura...of anyone actually, but it still annoyed me. I didn't exactly have the time or energy to explain my relationship with Sakura.

"I know but-"

"That is the last I want to hear of it." I snapped. Snake shrunk back on the couch sightly and ceased his complaints with a mutter. _So irritating. _My head was pounding, my eyes hurt from over usage of the Sharingan, and I wanted this damn mask off. _At least my ribs don't hurt anymore. _"I'm going to go check on Tiger." Snake was silent but nodded in my direction.

Sakura was sitting at a metal desk in the lab, scrawling on a piece of paper. She didn't glace up as I entered the room but seemed to be aware of my presence. I leaned against the desk and crossed my arms. "I thought you were "checking up" on Tiger?"

"He's fine, I just didn't want to be in that room with you two."

"Ouch." I murmured. Sakura gave a small grin.

"I don't think your team mate likes me very much."

"Snake? He doesn't like anyone. Including me."

"Well why would he? You're horrible." She teased. I rolled my eyes, (which of course she couldn't see or if she did she'd probably punch me)

"I haven't seen you in two weeks, is that all I get? A jab at my personality?" Sakura gave a tired sigh and glared at me, but her stare softened after a few moments and finally relented with a smirk. She stood up from the chair and hugged me, slightly awkward with my body armor. "See? That's a proper response." She slapped my shoulder roughly, uncaring of my tired body.

"Hey, you don't get to complain when you barge into my home unexpectedly with a half-dead team mate after you've been gone for two weeks, especially when you didn't even tell me you were leaving in the first place!" She pouted.

"Is that your way of saying you missed me?" I smirked.

She turned away with a humph, "Pff, miss you? I hardly knew you were gone. I do have other friends besides you, Itachi."

"Again with the hurtful comments." I tsked. This time, she rolled her eyes.

"And yet, who is it you thought to come to in your time of need? That's right, me. I guess I'm just that good."

"Yes, yes. You are an amazing medic, all hail Sakura." I got another punch for that sarcastic comment. "Calm down, I was only kidding. Your supposed to heal people, not injure them." She smiled evilly and turned back around to sit at the desk.

"Only the ones who are nice to me. All I'm saying is it would have been _nice _to know that our training session was canceled." _Oops._

"Sorry." She gave a wave of her hand, dismissing it. "So, what have you been up to?" She gave a little sigh.

"Oh you know, hospital work, training, yada yada yada." _Why is she lying? She knows that I can tell when somethings bothering her._

"Is that so?" I challenged.

"It is. Was your mission a success?"

"Yes, but that's not the point. You have something on your mind. What is it?" She glowered at me.

"Itachi, I'm glad your back-and safe- but I'm not ready to talk just yet. I'm exhausted and I'm sure you are as well. Can't you just drop it for now?" I studied her face carefully, she looked as worn as I felt and I do remember she seemed pretty upset after just knocking on her door..._Maybe that was due to us just barging in though._

"Alright, later then." She nodded thankfully and then turned her attention to the piece of paper on the desk, continuing her quick writing. I took the time of silence to look around the room. I had only been in Sakura house a few times before, she preferred keeping her ninja life away from her home and mother when it could be helped. There wasn't much to the lab, a bed (currently occupied), a few cabinets stocked with medical supplies, a desk, and a couple of smaller silver table tops pushed into the corners of the room. Nothing personalized the room except a few framed photos that were scattered about the desk top. I recognized Ino Yamanaka in one of them.

"Here." My head turned at Sakura's voice. "When you take your team mate to the hospital, give one of the doctors this. It has everything I did." I slipped the piece of paper into my pocket and gave a nod as my thanks.

"Is it safe to move him now?" I asked. Sakura walked over to the bed and examined Tiger for a few moments.

"Only if you can transport him with out moving him too much."

"Shouldn't be a problem." I murmured.

"You sure? I could probably get someone at the hospital to-"

I ignored her and prepared for the transport jutsu. "You mind if I come back later? I think my eyes need to be looked at." She glared at my interruption.

"Yeah, sure whatever. It's not like I have a life or anything-"

"Alright see you later then." I quickly disappeared, but not before seeing the intense look from Sakura.

XXXXXXXXXXX

He went away in a puff of smoke as his teammate had done earlier and I glared were he once stood. _Well, some things just don't change. _I left the lab to go check on the last (and rudest) member of Itachi's team. Snake sat stiff on the couch, looking down at his hands.

"Hey, Itachi went to take your team mate to the hospital-" Snake stood up immediately and poofed away before I finished my sentence. _Okay that's getting very infuriating. _"Yeah, bye to you too." I muttered. As I had predicted, the tea had been ignored and had gone cold on the table. I pick up the tray and dumped it in the sink to be washed later when I had the energy. Poison removal was strenuous and draining, I was even more tired than a few hours ago before my nap. _No point going back to sleep if Itachi going to be over later though..._

Despite my exhaustion I decided to clean up the lab, albeit begrudgingly. I made sure all of the poison had been neutralized and that it had not contaminated anything, and threw the bed sheets in the wash. I also cleaned up the blood from Itachi's injury. There wasn't much else to do after that besides a few house hold chores like the dishes and more laundry, both were done before Itachi had arrived. I fell back onto my napping spot with a sigh. How long would I have to wait here?

_"Is that your way of saying you missed me?"_

Of course I had missed him, but I wouldn't dare admit it! I do have other friends; Ino, Hinata, then some people on the hospital staff, and I suppose Lee counted, but Itachi was one of the few people I could just...relax around. I didn't need to pretend to be so strong at times, he had seen me at my lowest. I didn't need to contain my anger, I knew he was there if I needed to talk. And I really hoped he felt the same way. I did have to poke and prod him for a while but he would eventually cave and tell me what was bothering him...usually anyway

Around Ino or Tsunade I had to be careful what I said, they tended to blow up little situations into huge deals. Hinata was still so shy, better, but still shy and I always felt I was going to break her or something. The nurses at the hospital were usually nice, but they were more work friends. And Lee...well at least he's predictable.

The clock read four o'clock at this time, three hours ago Itachi said he'd be back. _Well if he is taking so long there's no reason why I can't finish my nap now. _I closed my eyes and within minutes I was just on the edge of sleep and in peace. Black crept in and pure dreamless sleep ensued, my muscles relaxed completely, aches and pains ceased and...knocking.

6:30 P.M.

_Two and a half hours? But I just closed my eyes... _The chakra signature was unmistakable, calm but a strong energy. Once again I dragged myself away from blissful sleep to answer the door. Itachi stood at the door looking much more rested then six hours ago, and his hair with still damp from a shower. He gave a warm smile which I returned with a glower. His grin fell and he gave me an apologetic look.

"I'm really sorry, there was an clan issue at home and then I fell asleep-"

"Just shut up and get in here before I change my mind." I stepped away from the door to let him in, he gave another sorry glance and enter through the doorway.

"Want some coffee?" I called over my shoulder on the way to the kitchen.

"Coffee would be great." Itachi took a seat on the couch and rested his head in his hands tiredly. _Looks like he didn't get any __**real**__ sleep either. _"By the way, it is okay to be here so late right? I don't want to bother your mother."

"She's in Suna, visiting some family." I grabbed a couple of mugs and poured the coffee, extra sugar for Itachi's

"Why didn't you go?"

I picked up both mugs and set them on the living room table. "I have work, I can't just take three weeks off."

"I think you are more than deserving of a vacation. You could use a break."

"You sound like Tsunade." I muttered. Itachi picked up his mug and took a long drink.

"Wise woman." He gave a smile. Even when he was out of energy he was snarky.

"Yeah well...you want me to look at your eyes or not? 'Cause I could just got back to sleep you know."

"You're cranky today." Itachi teased

"And I would come up with a snappy comeback if I wasn't so damn tired of people interrupting my naps." I snapped. I didn't mean to be so rude, but today had taken too much out of me. Though as per usual Itachi pretended not to have noticed my rudeness. "Okay...just let me look at your eyes." Itachi turned to face me on the couch and I put my hands to either side of his face. "Just relax." I closed my eyes and sent my chakra carefully into Itachi's eyes, moving through his chakra paths. I had studied the Sharingan many time before, I thought it would be useful when team seven returned, so I knew how it worked and the damages that usually happened with the usage.

It was always strange when I connected with anyone's chakra, no matter how many times I did it. You could push as much of your chakra into another person but that didn't stop their chakra from seeping into your own body; it was a two way street when you entered someone else path. I could feel Itachi's energy travel from him, into my finger tips, and through my chakra stream. A small, insignificant amount, but I could still feel it. Calm, cool, and regulated; his chakra was completely controlled.

I focused my attention back into his eyes. "Okay, activate it." Suddenly, the energy changed. Itachi's chakra almost..._sparked. _As a medic, things like the Sharingan always interested me and this time was no different. I could feel the path of chakra from Itachi's core to his eyes, and the damage with it. Scars along the paths, there was no way he wasn't in immense pain. I couldn't even imagine the damage that might be present in an Uchiha much older.

"Is it bad?" Itachi asked. I pulled away slowly to make sure I didn't do anymore damage.

"No more than the usual damages but..."

"But what?" he gave me a concerned look.

"Well...it just seems like it took less time to get the same amount of damage...that isn't good. You're over using it. You need to be more careful." He nodded in understanding and rubbed his eyes.

"I know, it's getting worse. I get a lot of headaches now." I placed my glowing hand to his head again, relieving some pain. He gave me a thankful smile. "Do you think you could repair my eyes any?"

I shook my head sadly. "I'm still pretty drained from today and it's kind of a delicate procedure, I don't want to falter half way through. I suggest you just go to your family doctor." He didn't look to pleased about that but nodded again and leaned his head on the back of the couch with a groan.

"I hate the hospital." He muttered. "No offense."

"None taken, it's the last place I want to be right now." I chuckled.

"Mm, so is that what's bothering you ?"

I grounded internally. "Oh won't you let it be?" But I already knew the answer to that. He turned his head to me and waited patiently. "I thought you were tired?"

"Talking doesn't take much effort. Now come on, out with it. I need some normalcy after my hectic day." He closed his eyes and made a "move it along" motion with his hand. I gathered my thoughts for a few moments before speaking.

"Apparently Genma has an opening in his cell." I kept my voice low and calm despite my irritation.

"And?"

"_And _Tsunade wants me to join, Genma agreed."

"See for most people that would be good news, Sakura." He smirked at me, eyes still closed.

"We'll if you haven't noticed, I'm not most people. And I just...I don't know how to feel about it." He opened his mouth but I cut him off before he spoke. "Don't, I already know what your going to say." I cleared my throat and made my voice deeper. "Sakura, this is an great opportunity. You should take it before it disappears, you are very lucky to gave been given this chance...life lesson...reference to ninja responsibilities...euphemisms about the world."

Itachi glared at me now. "I do not sound anything like that."

"Well you do in my head." I giggled. He rolled his eyes.

"_Well_ it seems like I give good advice, take it."

"But I don't know if I want to..." I looked down at my hands nervously. I could hear Itachi sigh deeply.

"Last time I saw you, you complained that you never get to go anywhere. Being on a team will allow you to go on missions and get out of the village. If you stick to it long enough, with a three man cell you can re-take to Chunin exams...seeing how the former time you didn't have the proper training, and the attack on the village certainly didn't help. Seems like an easy choice to me in all."

"It should be, shouldn't it?" I murmured. There were only goods things to come out of joining a new team, and yet... _Do they still care? Even just a little? Surely at least Naruto... _Two years. Two long years I have been here without them, waiting. Waiting for what? For their return? I have changed so much since then, I know that...I also know I haven't stopped changing yet. _I can only imagine...how much they have both changed. _And then there was how they would not change. Like Tsunade said, some part of them will never change. Naruto was on his was to become a Sage like his mentor...but he would never stop being the silly over protective brother he has always been. And Sasuke. Would he realize me for what I have become...or what I have done in the past?

Questions, Questions! Why was this so damn hard?! I couldn't let them go, not just yet. Despite the pain they bring I don't want to let go.

"You know, being on another team doesn't change the past." Itachi said.

"Huh?" I wanted answers-not puzzles.

He opened his eyes only half way. "Those memories you shared with them...the good and the bad. They won't just disappear. They will always be there as long as you care to remember. So, joining another team, is making new memories. The past is gone, holding on to it is saying you want to stay there. Do you want that? To go back to the person you were?" I shook my head. This was something, possibly the only thing at the moment, that I was sure of. I didn't want to be that girl again.

"No, I can't be that person. Not ever again."

"Then don't. Do what you want, Sakura- no one is going to stop you. However, please think about the effects of waiting around versus moving on." Itachi finished talking and closed his eyes again. When it was obvious he was done, I turned away and pulled my knees to my chest, and rested my head. I didn't have to think about if he was right or wrong – since he was always right- instead I thought about not moving on. How much longer would I have to wait for their return? Months or years? There wasn't even an guarantee Kakashi would let me back on the team. I suppose Tsunade could force him...but that might just cause even more problems.

Maybe some advice from myself would help... I focused on breaking my inner walls down, one stone at a time. _**Oh, so I'm allowed out now? **_

_Stop complaining and help me will you? _

_**-sigh- Alright. But I don't know why you're asking. You know he's right. The past belongs where it is...in the past. **_

_In the past..._

Every time the past was remembered, a small hole nagged at my heart. A hole that was formed on that dreadful day. Slowly...that hole became less painful, the hurtful memories became sporadic as distractions arose. But that didn't stop the hurt that came when they eventually appeared. _In the past..._

"Alright! I got it!" I didn't want to feel that pain anymore, I want new memories...a future free of troubles. Well the least amount of trouble that comes with being a ninja. "Itachi I think I've figured it out-" But my great realization went unnoticed. Itachi sat next to me, asleep, head lulled to the side. I smiled ever so slightly. _Well, I guess he really isn't so invincible after all. _

I got up quietly, making the least amount of noise possible, and draped him in a blanket that lay on the back of the couch. He stirred slightly and I froze in place, but he eventually settled once more. I had to admit I was surprised he hadn't awoken, his keen senses are very hard to fool, yet I suppose the recent exhaustion and damage had finally taken it's toll on Itachi's body. Quieting my footsteps, I made my way upstairs to my room to get some well deserved sleep as well.

XXXXXXXXXXX

I woke up much too early for my liking, Tsunade's early schedule had imprinted on my internal clock, and like always it went off right on the dot if I had a day off or not. So I let my daily routine begin as normal and jumped in the shower for a quick wash.

I came walked down the stairs of my home attired in a white tank top and black shorts, with a towel in hand to dry my hair. I was first panicked to see a body laying on the living room couch, then relaxed remembering who it was. I locked at the clock- eight AM. Late enough to wake him? Itachi really needed the sleep, but he also needed to get back to the clan.

Cautiously I approach the sleeping shinobi, waking a ninja wasn't always a great idea. Being trained to sense danger at any time, waking one while in a deep sleep could be dangerous. Keeping a safe distance, I spoke softly.

"Uh, Itachi?" Not loud enough. "Heeeey." I said a bit louder. "It's time to wake up!" Itachi stirred at this, but still seemed to be asleep. _Damn he pretty out of it. Time for drastic measures. _Quietly, I took a nearby throw pillow, stepped back to the wall, and tossed it _near _him. It was quite enough to get a reaction. Itachi shot up and glanced around hurriedly, kunai already in hand pulled somewhere among his clothes. His eyes came to rest on me and he calmed his stance.

"It's dangerous to do that." He said, realizing what had occurred.

"That's why I'm all the way back here, it's not my fault you wouldn't wake up." I chuckled.

Itachi rubbed his face tiredly. "What time is it anyway?"

"Eight."

His head snapped up. "Dammit, I'm late." He stood up in a hurry and made his way to the front door.

"Oh, Sorry I didn't realize...I didn't think you should have been woken. Sorry." I apologized quietly. Itachi turned to smile at me.

"It's fine, thank you actually. I probably wouldn't have gotten any real sleep at home anyway. I'll see you later okay?" I nodded and opened the front door to let him out. He was halfway down the steps before he called back out. "Did you figure out what to do?"

"Yep, while you were asleep. It was a pretty good epiphany too."

"Well, I promise I'll be awake for the next one then."

"I'm holding you to it. Go on, don't want to make them wait any longer." We waved goodbye and I went back inside to grab some quick breakfast before meeting Tsunade.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"This is great news! I knew you would make the right decision so I already told Genma." _That's just like Tsunade. _

"And if I hadn't?" I challenged.

"I knew you would. Now If you want to go meet the team, they are at training ground 5. Hurry up!" Tsunade shut the door in my face. _Does no one say goodbye anymore? _Pushing aside the growing rudeness of the population I left the Hokage building in search of training ground 5. I had only been walking a few minutes before I was able to become a nervous wreak. _What if they hate me? Their team mate just died, maybe they aren't ready for a new member. I should have never agreed to this! __**Calm down. Just stay calm and prove yourself. You can do this. You **__**deserve**__** this. **__I deserve this. I deserve this. _

I took deep breaths to calm my nerves and repeated the mantra. _I deserve this. I deserve this. _This was it. I could see the grounds not far up ahead, along with three figures in the distance. One of them was shouting.

"How could you allow this?!" Two of the people were unrecognizable to me, but I was sure Genma was the one being yelled at.

"Now, now." Genma tired to calm the upset Ninja. "A replacement was needed for Kuma-"

"He _just _died. It's barley been a few weeks!" I could see the screaming ninja more closely now. He was a tall and large man with wide, powerful shoulders, around my age, maybe a year older.

"Akira, calm done." The last boy said putting a hand on Akira's shoulder, though he quickly shoved it off. This boy was smaller and much more calm, his dark brown hair fell in front of his eyes, but they locked with mine as I moved closer to the trio. "Genma-sensei." He point over to me. "It seems we have company."

Genma's face brightened when he spotted me. "Ah! Sakura, there you are!" He waved me over hurriedly but I approached the boys carefully. "Boys, this is Sakura Haruno; apprentice to the Fifth Hokage, and your new team mate. Sakura this is-"

"A girl?! You replacing Kuma with just some girl. We don't even know her! This is ridiculous!" Akira complained.

"Hey now-"

"It's alright, Genma. I understand." I interrupted.

"No it's not okay. He forgot his manners." Genma whacked the boy upside the head.

"Really, maybe this wasn't the best idea. I don't want to intrude on your team, especially so close to the loss of a teammate."

"See? She understands!" Genma glared at the boy and he shut his mouth.

"Regardless of any "understanding," this is happening. We need a new member, and Sakura has generously taken time off her work at the hospital to join us. She is an excellent medical ninja." Genma argued.

"You're a medic?" The still unnamed boy asked.

I nodded. "Well I'm still learning." He smiled softly.

"Well then, welcome to the team. My name is Emori Toyama. The loud one is Akira Kyoto." Emori shook my hand.

"Nice to meet you." I bowed my head.

"What? Emori!" Akira continued in his complaints. "Have you suddenly forgotten the past month or something?"

"No I haven't, she's a medic Akira. If we had one before then last month might have not happened." No one could argue his logic and an awkward silence fell over us. Akira glanced at me with piercing blue eyes.

"Fine." He muttered.

"Great!" Genma said excitedly. "Now we are all introduced, why don't we get started then? You three need to learn how to work together," He turned to the boys, "you two need to help her as much as you can alright?"

"Hai, sensei." Both chorused.

"Good, lets start with a simple exercise." Genma explained several exercises we'd would be doing today, it brought back many memories, and not all bad. Genma first had us spar each other a little to understand our abilities. Overall, we were pretty evenly matched, neither of the boys got too much of an upper hand on me and nor I on them. Emori seemed to warm up to me very quickly, he was a kind boy and very polite. His team mate Akira was much more distant. That was until I healed him a few times from various aliments caused by Genma's projectiles thrown at us with out mercy, but in all normal training and it did not take long at all to form a system with the two.

"Alright! Now I want you all to take me down together." Genma announced several hours later. _Oh great. _If this went anything like the first round of Kakashi's bell test, we were screwed. I think I could count on Emori to work with, but Akira seemed quite reckless in his attacks (hence all the healings) and quite untrusting of a new member. "Go!"

We all disappeared into the surrounding woods, this time however the boys had stuck close to me and were no more than ten feet away. Something I wasn't used to.

"What's the plan?" Akira asked looking to Emori.

"I was thinking like a three part attack; one after the other. Sakura's quick and Genma doesn't know her moves as well as ours, she should go first. Then I'll come in with her, then you can finish it off with a earth jutsu or something. You two okay with that?" Akira and I both nodded.

"Alright, girly. You're up. Show us you deserve to be here." Akira crosses his arms over his large chest.

_Yeah, I'll show you I deserve to be here. _I quickly suppressed my chakra signature and made my way to the outskirts of the tree tops. Genma leaded against a tree on the far side of the dirt area, senbon hanging from his mouth. I needed to get closer to attack. _I need to distract him first. _

I punched the ground with a chakra infused fist and the earth shook, a deep crack heading straight for Genma. Alarmed by the sudden attack, the Jounin flipped away to the far side of grounds, this gave me plenty of time to hide myself in the earth. I jumped out of the ground and in front of Genma and threw a powerful punch, which he blocked and pushed me back a few feet.

"Ah, so you have adopted you mentor's strength." He seemed slightly impressed but left no room for a reply before he attacked. I dodged a kick at my head and swept my leg under him, but Genma jumped back and tossed a cloud of senbon in my direction. _Dodging is what I do best. _It wasn't to hard to avoid them for the most part, but still a few hit their mark, scaring my arms in a few places. The cuts quickly disappeared with healing and I threw a sting of kicks as Emori made his appearance.

I had studied Emori only a short time but it was enough to realize his greatest strength. He was extremely talented with weaponry and handled his sword against Genma expertly and without hesitation. Emori didn't land a solid hit, back grazed Genma in a few places. Emori and I attacked simultaneously, he fought short ranged with close up swordsmanship while I opted to medium to long range support with kunai and ground punches until Akira arrived. _Speaking of which where is he? _

"I do believe there is one missing!" Genma voiced my thoughts. I tried to pin point Akira location but he was hidden fairly well. Genma didn't give much of a chance for the final member to arrive and turned up his attacks enough so Emori jumped back to where I stood.

"I don't know him very well so maybe you could tell me, is Akira usually this 'fashionably' late?" I asked Emori under my breath between attacks.

"He likes to show off sometimes, yes. But I am puzzled too." He grunted back.

_Great. Not another show-off. Why- _Akira's chakra suddenly appeared with a large spike.

"Let's move." Emori tugged on my arm and we both jumped over the the side of the trees.

"Hey now! Do tell me that's all you two got!" Genma laughed.

Akira appeared and flash a few quick hand signs. "Earth Style: Rock Raid!" Earth began flying up everywhere in a sort of small tornado, and shot lightning quick towards Genma. The tornado suddenly dispersed and rocks scattered in the air, dropping fast to the earth around the ninja. A few rocks hit the ground very close to him, and one nearly took off his head, but Genma managed to dodge them all and jumped back twenty feet away from where the last rock hit.

He began clapping as he landed. "Very good! A little slow on the mark, but excellent for the first day."

"Speaking of slow on the mark," Emori glowered, "where were you?" He elbowed Akira.

"Hey! I was just checking out the newbie over here." He aimed a punch at his team mates head, but did not connect.

"And?" I asked hopefully. Akira stepped closer to me, he was at least a head and a half taller and I'll admit he intimidated me somewhat. He stared down at me sternly, but not too harshly.

"And you were slightly impressive- for a girl that is." I smiled. "But I'm keeping my eye on you, girly."

"Don't called me that." I glared.

"Oh, does it bother you? Yeah I'm defiantly calling you 'girly' now!" He cackled loudly. I clenched my fist and raised it slightly.

"Why you-"

"Alright everyone excellent job today!" Genma interrupted.

Reluctantly, I put down my hand. It probably would be a good start for me to punch out my team mate on the first day. Genma turned to me. "I think you will be just fine here. Don't you boys agree?" Emori nodded with a smile and Akira gave a 'yeah whatever.' "Sakura, welcome to Team Oni."

**Thank you all for reading! I hope you decide to stay with the story where ever it ends up! **

**A few notes:**

"**Oni" is Japanese for demon (in honor of the story)**

**WARNING POSSIBLE SPPOLIERS IN THE ANIME UP TO THE FINAL PART OF CHUNIN EXAMS**

**In reference to a guest review: ****Question: how come Tsunade is Hokage if the Uchiha massacre never happened? ****Answer: I don't see how to two correlate exactly, Tsunade became Hokage when the Third was killed by Orochimaru in a direct attempt attack on Kohona and it's leader. I will develop the issue more deeply later in the story! I hope I answer your question, but I could be wrong as it has been a very long time since I watched this part of the Anime and I would appreciate any input by reviewers! **

**Thank you so much for all the reviews, followings, and favorites, I never imagined to even get this far! **

**BTW: I am looking for a test reader, (who will look for typos, give suggestions, etc.) I 'd prefer someone who is an avid reader/writer versus just a fan of the Anime. Leave me a message if you are interested and I will contact you! **


End file.
